Beauty Found Within
by pikaace
Summary: Based on Beauty and the Beast. Amelia is the book-loving girl of her small village who longs for adventure. But one night, her father goes on a journey and is captured by a hideous beast living in a cursed castle. In exchange for her father's freedom, Amelia takes his place as the beast's prisoner. Can Amelia connect with the creature and will beast finally learn to love?
1. Prologue

**Gaaahhhhh! Once again another Disney plot bunny that JUST WON'T DIE! DX**

**I got this started and just said 'what the hell' so here it is! My very first Romerica fic! SQUEEEEE! Like Aristonekos, this won't take long to update so I can keep you guys busy with this. As usual, I am going to be adding different twists to this as well to make it different. You KNOW how much I hate fics that are carbon copies of movies X(**

**But without further ado, let us begin!**

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Prologue

_Once upon a time in a far away land, there lived two young princes in a shining castle. The princes were brothers and had everything they could ever want. But while the younger brother was kind, happy and loving, his elder brother was cold, unkind and spoiled. _

_It wasn't long before the younger prince fell in love with a commoner from the village nearby. The commoner, though he was in a state of denial for some time, soon returned the princes feelings and the two were soon promised to be married. The elder prince despised commoners and hated that his brother would wed someone on such a level; but he wanted his brother to be happy, so he tolerated the decision. _

_But one fateful night, a fortnight before the wedding, a terrible storm raged throughout the land. An old beggar woman arrived at the castle and asked for shelter from the rain with only a single rose as payment. The younger prince gladly welcomed her, but the elder prince, repulsed by her haggard appearance, turned the woman away ignoring his brother's protests._

_ The woman warned the elder prince to not be deceived by appearance for true beauty is found within. Unfazed by the words, the elder prince dismissed her once again and in doing so, sealed his fate. The old woman melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress. The terrified princes tried to apologize to her, but she had already seen that there was no love in the elder prince's heart._

_ As punishment, the enchantress placed a spell on the princes and all who lived in the castle, ripping away their happiness. The elder prince transformed into a hideous beast and the enchantress said that while the spell was upon him, he and everyone around him would suffer. _

_With those words, the enchantress trapped the commoner the younger prince was going to marry inside an enchanted mirror within the castle, the two lovers doomed to be separated by the binding magic of the spell. The enchantress then vanished; leaving behind the single rose she had offered them and the only way to break the spell. _

_The magical rose was to stay in full bloom until the princes' twenty first year before beginning to wilt away. If the elder prince could learn to love another and earn their love in return before the last petal fell, the spell would be broken and the commoner would be free to live with his true love once again; if not, the prince would remain a beast for all eternity and the commoner would remain in the glass prison forever separated from the younger prince. _

_The elder prince, ashamed of his appearance and what he had done concealed himself in his castle with a small magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. _

_As the years passed the ones in the castle fell into despair and lost all hope; for who could ever learn to love a beast?_

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**Short but sweet for a prologue! Soooo what did you think? Did you catch the twists that I'm gonna throw in? If so, *whispers* don't spoil it! (unless you just can't hold in all your excitement!)**

**Review and tell me what you think!**


	2. Amelia

**Alright, time to get this party started! I'm curious to how you like the rest of the cast I picked out!**

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Chapter 1

The morning sun shone down as morning broke on the small village. Near the outskirts of the town, Amelia Jones exited her cottage carrying a small basket with a single book inside. Amelia ran a hand through her short wavy blonde hair that was clipped to the side with a red star shaped barrette; it was just another day in this poor provincial town, every morning just the same ever since she and her father had moved here. Amelia sighed, "Same town, same people waking up every morning to say-"

"Hello!"

"Good morning!"

"Hello there!"

Right on cue, everyone in the small town emerged from their cottages ready to start the day. Amelia smiled at the normal but warming sight of everyone going off as she headed towards the book shop, "Good morning Amelia!" Amelia turned to see the baker, a Chinese man named Yao Wang, waving to her. "Morning Yao," Amelia responded.

"Where are you off to today?" Yao asked as he placed his tray of treats on the windowsill. "The book shop, I just finished this awesome book," Amelia answered excitedly pulling out her book, "It's about this heroic boy who climbs a beanstalk and-"

"That's nice," Yao said, waving her off his attention drawn to his baked goods. Amelia rolled her eyes and shrugged as she went on her way. No one ever seemed to be interested in the same things as her; that was mostly because she liked things that girls her age weren't interested in. Instead of swooning about guys and hanging out with other girls, Amelia loved to immerse herself in books, reading about wonderful fairy tales and magic.

As she walked, she noticed a few people whispering as she passed by them; probably talking about her no doubt. Even though Amelia had been dubbed as the prettiest girl in the town, she was still known as the oddball of the town as well. But Amelia didn't care; her father had taught her to never let what other people say bother you if you aren't bothering them. "There _must _be more than this normal life…I just know it," Amelia said to herself as she entered the book shop where the owner, Kiku was waiting.

"Hello, Amelia-chan," he greeted her. "Morning; I've come to return the book I borrowed," Amelia announced as she handed Kiku the book. "You finished it already?" Kiku asked in surprise.

Amelia grinned as she began to peruse the book shelves, "Are you kidding? I couldn't put it down!" she said excitedly, "Anything new yet?" Kiku chuckled and shook his head, "Not since yesterday," he said. Amelia nodded, "Alright, then I'll borrow…" her eyes scanned the shelves until they landed on one and she snatched it, "this one!"

Kiku took it and looked at the title, "But…you have already read this one twice Amelia-chan," he said. Amelia bounced with excitement, "I know but it's my _favorite!_ Far off places! Epic swordfights! A heroic princess! It has _everything!_" Kiku smiled and placed the book in her hands, "If you like that much, then you can keep it," he said.

Amelia looked at him in shock, "What? Are you sure?" she asked. Kiku nodded, "I insist; enjoy it." He said. Amelia gave a big smile and quickly hugged Kiku, "Thanks so much Kiku! You're the best!" Kiku blushed slightly, caught off guard by the gesture, "It's my pleasure Amelia-chan," he said. "Well I better get going; see you later!" Amelia called as she went out the door with a wave.

Amelia immediately opened the book and began to read it while able to navigate the busy streets as well. Eventually, Amelia sat down at the fountain that marked the plaza of the village and read intently. "God, this book is so _amazing!" _Amelia nearly squealed.

"What are you reading Amelia?" Amelia looked up to see a small Italian boy named Marcello and his friend, an Australian girl named Winnie smiling up at her.

"It's my favorite part of this book; the prince has just met a strange girl who is really strong," Amelia leaned down towards them secretly, "But what he doesn't know is that the girl is actually a princess in disguise who's trying to break a spell that's been cast on her family," "Wooooow!" The two kids breathed with wide eyes.

"Winnie, Marcello, we have to go!" Winnie turned towards the source of the voice, an Australian man named Logan, "Coming big brother!" she called back. "Bye Amelia!" they called as they ran off. Amelia waved before she got up and headed on her way; she had to get home soon if she wanted to help her father out around the house (the man couldn't cook to save his life…).

She weaved through the crowds as they looked at her in either interest or disdain. Both Amelia _and _her father were nothing like the rest of them. Amelia was constantly reading or talking about how she wants to be a great heroine and have adventures and her father always stayed cooped up in their cottage creating infernal contraptions and doing something that always resulted in huge explosions. Sure, Amelia was beautiful and nice, but just so _strange_.

Amelia was nearing the edge of town when a familiar figure appeared in front of her, "Hey Amelia," he said with a cheeky smirk, his red eyes shining with mischief and his pet bird Gilbird resting on his shoulder. "Hi Gilbert," Amelia droned, not taking her eyes off her book and making to pass him.

Gilbert quickly snatched the book from Amelia's hands and flipped through it, ignoring Amelia's irritated glare, "How can you read this thing? A book without pictures is totally un-awesome," he scoffed before Amelia snatched it back, "Some people just have to use their imagination," she said.

Gilbert was known for being the most handsome and 'awesome' guy in town. Gilbert was pretty much the town's hero, but lately he had begun to grow a bit more mischievous and Amelia had a pretty good idea why. Gilbert's family lived in another village a while away from here. But many years ago, while Gilbert was living in this village to seek his fortune, his little brother went missing and was presumed dead; that's when the mischief started. Gilbert has had his eye out for Amelia for a few years now, not just because she was pretty but because she was tough; he even dared to call her almost as awesome as he was, and that said a lot. Gilbert saw himself only fit to marry a girl who was nearly as awesome as him, and Amelia fit the bill perfectly.

"Don't you think you ought to stop reading those books and start acting like a _real _girl?" Gilbert asked. "What's it matter to you?" Amelia asked.

Gilbert shrugged, "Oh, just the fact that the whole town is talking about you and your 'habits'," he made quotation marks with his fingers, "And I think I agree with them; it's not…normal for a chick like you to read; next thing you know all the girls around here will start getting ideas." He said.

Amelia rolled her eyes, "You are _so _primeval," she said. "_Danke, _I do my best," Gilbert said with a smirk, completely oblivious to what she meant, "So whattaya say I take you down to the tavern for a beer," he said taking her hand.

Amelia slipped her hand out of his, "Sorry, I have to get home to help my dad," she said. Gilbert laughed, "Yeah, that crazy old man of yours needs all the help he can get!" Amelia frowned, "Shut up! My dad's a genius and he'll be more than you could ever be!" she retorted angrily when an explosion came from her house.

Gilbert broke down laughing and Amelia quickly ran home. She ran to the cellar where her father usually worked and opened it to get a face full of smoke causing her to cough, "Daddy?" she called as she made her way into the cellar. As the smoke cleared she spotted a familiar mop of messy blonde hair and distinctly large eyebrows cursing like a sailor as he worked himself out of a pile of rubble that had crumbled on him from the wall, black smudge smeared on his face and clothes.

"Are you okay Dad? What happened?" Amelia asked, putting her basket down and running to his side to help him up, "I'm about ready to give up on this bloody thing!" Her father, Arthur growled getting to his feet, "You _always_ say that," Amelia said and spotted a circle drawn with chalk on the floor near her father's invention, "Did you try to use magic _again_?" she asked.

Arthur brushed himself off, "Well at this point it was my only option, but now it's official; I'll _never _get this blasted contraption to work!" he yelled giving the machine a kick. Amelia smiled, "Yes you will, and you'll totally blow away the competition at the fair tomorrow," she said putting his arm around him. Arthur still didn't look convinced so Amelia took it a step further, "_And_ become the greatest inventor of all time." She sang.

Arthur's face finally softened, "You really believe that?" he asked. Amelia gave him a peck on the cheek, "I wouldn't be very heroic if I didn't believe in my own Dad; now c'mon, I'll help you," she said. Arthur smiled and sighed in defeat, "Alright then, let's get to work; hand me those tools would you poppet?" he asked as he began to check the machine.

Amelia ran over and got the toolbox before sitting next to her father and handing him the tools he needed, "So, how was your trip to town?" Arthur asked. "Well, Kiku let me keep my favorite book," she answered. After a moment, Amelia spoke up again, "Daddy, do you think I'm…weird?" she asked out of nowhere.

Arthur looked up at her and frowned, "Who told you that rubbish?" he asked. Amelia shrugged, "I dunno, it's just…I don't think I really fit in here; I don't really have anyone to talk to," she said handing him a wrench. "Well, you talk to that Gilbert lad quite a bit; but I don't really trust that troublesome git," Arthur said.

Amelia rolled her eyes, "Yeah, troublesome, annoying, and conceited." She agreed. Arthur screwed one last bolt in the machine and got up, "Alright, that should do it; let's give it a try." Arthur pulled a lever and the machine roared to life. The two took a step back as the gadgets and gizmos on the machine whirled and buzzed before a small ax swung down and cleanly sliced a small log in half.

The machine then pushed the logs aside and replaced them with another whole one before repeating the process, "It works! You did it!" Amelia cheered and hugged Arthur who grinned in triumph. He turned the machine off, "We better get ready; I'll have to leave tonight if I want to make it to the fair!" he announced. Amelia nodded and rushed inside the house to put together some food for the journey while Arthur loaded up the machine to cart that was harnessed to their horse, a white mare named Minty.

Arthur put on his black hooded cloak and Amelia met him outside carrying a small bag which she placed in the cart. "You take care Amie; I should be back in about three days," Arthur said.

Amelia hugged him, "Be safe Daddy; oh, I made something for your trip," she said and pulled out a green scarf. "It's for good luck, and in case it gets cold," she said.

Arthur smiled and took it, "Thank you Amelia," he wrapped it around his neck and mounted Minty. "Bye Daddy! Good luck!" Amelia called waving and watched as her father disappeared into the sunset.

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**I think the only logical reason America would like fairy tales was if she was raised by Britain (minus the revolution). I also think fem!America would be a bit more witty and tough, not naive and girly.**

**Of course Prussia is Gaston; no one else is as in to himself as he is! I guess that makes Gilbird the LeFou figure...? I dunno.**

**And if you didn't notice, Flying Mint Bunny is the horse...makes sense right? Only he doesn't talk or fly...**

**Also, Marcello and Winnie are Seborga and Wy (Wy doesn't have a good human name so I made one up) and Logan is Australia (again, couldn't find a name).**

**Review please! *makes puppy eyes***


	3. Lost in the Woods

**Okay, time to get hopelessly lost and trapped in a castle!**

**BTW I'm thinking, since you guys seem to like my Disney parodies, I would like to hear ideas from you. If you have a fav classic Disney movie and want me to Hetalia-nize it, tell me in a review or a PM. Then I'll take the suggestions, make a poll and see what will be written first. **

** Right now, I'm thinking of a Pirates of the Caribbean parody next; I have a poll on my profile to choose the main pairings so check it out a vote! Anyway, let's keep going!**

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Chapter 2

Arthur and Minty followed the path with ease until they came to a forest, but by then it was starting to grow dark. Arthur frowned and looked at his map, "We should be there by now; we must've taken a wrong turn," he said thoughtfully. They walked a bit further until they reached a crossroad; unfortunately the signs were barely legible, having been worn away by time. "Now which way do we go?" Arthur asked out loud.

Minty looked at the two paths; one looked normal, but the other was foggy and looked very eerie. Minty whinnied and turned her head towards the brighter path as if to say, 'This way dumbass,' but Arthur wasn't thinking the same thing. "C'mon, we'll go this way," he said turning her towards the darker path.

Minty gave him a look that said, 'Are you freaking serious?!' before whinnying in disagreement. Arthur rolled his eyes, "Oh don't be such a coward, we'll get there in no time; let's go." He ordered and urged Minty forwards. The path got dark and foggy as they made their way deeper into the forest. The full moon that was once shining brightly through the trees was swallowed up by the dark clouds hanging in the sky.

Minty tried to ignore the ominous shadows created by the trees and Arthur frowned as he looked at the map again, "This _can't _be right, where have you taken us this time Minty?" he said frowning. Minty only rolled her eyes; sure, blame the horse. "C'mon, let's turn around," Arthur said. Minty sighed in relief and attempted to turn, but the path was narrower than she thought, making it difficult to turn around with the huge cart on her back.

As the mare attempted to back up, the cart hit a tree disturbing a nest of bats. The little creatures flew out in a frenzy surrounding the horse and cart. With a frightened whinny, Minty took off down the path, blind to which way she was going. "Minty! Steady girl! Steady!" Arthur yelled as he struggled to regain control of the frightened horse. Unfortunately he then failed to see a very low tree branch coming his way. With a smack, Arthur flipped backwards and hit the cold hard ground with a thud. As he lay dazed on the ground, Minty made a beeline out of the forest, cart and all, not noticing the absence of her rider.

When Arthur came to his senses, it had grown darker and colder, "Minty?" he called quietly, but there was no sign of the white mare. Arthur got to his feet shivered as he wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck; he was glad that she gave him it to provide a little extra warmth from the cold. Arthur wandered aimlessly through the dark forest looking for any sign of an exit, but the fog was so thick he couldn't even see the path in front of him. He wrapped his cloak around him tighter as he fought to keep his teeth from chattering when a low growl caused him to freeze.

He slowly turned around to see three large wolves on a small hill, baring their teeth and growling hungrily. Arthur slowly took a few steps back hoping to get away, but that hope was blown to heck when a twig snapped beneath his foot. He looked up at the wolves in horror to see them jump off the hill towards him and the Brit ran as fast as he could. Thunder banged and lightning flashed as the sky opened up in a downpour. Arthur pulled the hood of his cloak up as he continued to run from the hungry wolves.

He turned around for a second to see if he had lost them, and let out a cry as he fell down a small hill and into a puddle, drenching him more than he already was. He got up and squinted through the rain to see a large gate in front of him. Hearing the wolves' growls getting closer, Arthur ran up to the gate. To his delight, it was unlocked. He ran inside and slammed the door shut just in time, not noticing that his scarf had fallen to the ground in the frenzy.

Arthur looked up and stared in awe at an enormous castle that stood before him. Perhaps he could stay there until the rain stopped so he could get home. He ran up to the large wooden doors and pounded on them, only to find that they were unlocked. Arthur opened the door slowly and walked inside, his wet clothes dripping on the floor. The door led to a huge foyer that was dark empty; not a soul was in sight. "H-Hello?" Arthur called quietly as he rubbed his hands together to keep warm, "Hello?" he called again, only louder.

On the small table near Arthur, a candelabra and a mantel clock sat unmoving. A pair of eyes cracked open on each one as they carefully watched the stranger. "He must have gotten lost in the woods," The candelabra (who seemed to have a bit of blonde hair on his waxy head) whispered with a strong French accent to the clock who quickly shushed him.

Arthur looked around more, having thought he heard voices, "Is someone there?" he called again. The clock (who had a strange curl on his head and wore what looked like to be glasses) gave the candelabra a glare, "Not another word Francis," he hissed with an Austrian accent.

Now Arthur was certain he had heard someone, "I-I don't mean to intrude, but I lost my horse and I need a place to stay." He said loudly, still looking for the source of the voice. The candelabra, Francis seemed to look pitiful for the Brit and turned to the clock, "C'mon Roderich, have a heart," he said before Roderich clapped a metal hand over the candle's mouth.

Francis simply responded by holding one of his lit candle hands under the clock's hand causing his to shout in pain and remove his burned hand. "Of course _monsieur_, you are very welcome here!" Francis said loudly. Arthur picked up the candelabra looking around for whoever was talking. "Over here!" Francis called from his hand causing Arthur to whirl around.

"Where?" he asked when he felt a tap on his head. He looked up to see the smiling face of the candelabra, "Bonjour," he said simply. Arthur cried out in fright, dropping Francis who crashed to the ground, his candles all going out. Arthur watched in amazement as the French candle picked himself up, "What the bloody-?" he started to say but he was cut off when Roderich angrily jumped down from the table, "Now you've done it Francis! What are we supposed to do now?!" he demanded.

Arthur bent down and picked the angry clock off the ground to get a closer look, "I've never seen magic like this before," he said in amazement as he turned and flipped the clock this way and that in his hands. "If you don't mind, would you put me down this instant?!" Roderich snapped, feeling a bit dizzy.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Arthur said putting the clock back on the ground before shivering a bit as a chill seemed to sweep through the air. "Oh, you are chilled to the bone monsieur," Francis said, "Come and warm yourself by the fire." Arthur followed Francis, both of them ignoring Roderich's protests, into a large parlor where a warm fire was in the fireplace.

"Have a seat," Francis said gesturing to a single armchair that sat in front of the fire, "Thank you," Arthur said as he sat down (much to Roderich's horror). As Arthur got himself settled, a (somewhat small) walking coat rack named Ravis walked over and wrapped a thick blanket around him, warming the man considerably. A serving cart then appeared right next him containing a talking teapot named Elizaveta, "Would you like some tea sir?" she asked in a Hungarian accent. "Thank you," Arthur said as the teapot filled the cup with the warm liquid; after a night like this, tea was just what Arthur needed.

He picked up the small cup and took a long sip before the cup wiggled, "Brr, his hands are so cold!" a small British accent squeaked. Arthur stopped and saw that the cup had a face as well. "Now Peter, be nice to our guest," A Finnish voice said. A talking milk pitcher named Tino came onto the cart as well followed by his 'husband' Berwald, the sugar dish. "Sorry Mamma," Peter chirped.

"Ve~! Is there someone here?" an Italian voice called. Arthur looked and flinched as a large brown wolf with a strange curl on his head walked into the firelight. "Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you; I wouldn't hurt a fly!" the wolf said happily walking up to Arthur, "My name's Feliciano, nice to meet you!" Arthur smiled, "Hello, I'm-" he was cut off as the doors to the parlor flew open and a gust of wind put the fire out in a flash.

The talking objects all jumped and hid in fright as someone…or some_thing_ entered the now dark parlor. Arthur's eyes darted around the room as a low and slightly Italian voice growled, "There's a stranger here..."

"Master, let me explain," Francis said quickly, fear beginning to shake his voice, "The poor man was lost in the woods; he was cold and-" Francis was cut off as the…thing in the room roared loudly.

Feliciano timidly went up the source of the voice, "_F-fratello_, please don't be mad; h-he's not going to-" The thing roared again and knocked the wolf out of the way resulting in a yelp from the poor wolf. Arthur could feel that the voice was close. He turned to see a pair of golden eyes staring right at him.

He let out a cry of fright as he stumbled out of the chair as a large shadow loomed over him, "What the hell are you doing here?!" the shadow demanded, rows of sharp fangs glistening. Arthur slowly backed up, stumbling for words, "I-I was lost in the woods, a-and I-I just-" "You're not welcome here!" the shadow yelled causing Arthur to jump, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude, I just…" he trailed off as the shadow's eyes bore into him.

"What the hell are you staring at?!" the shadow demanded. "N-Nothing!" Arthur cried shaking his head. "So, you've come to stare at the beast have you bastard?!" the shadow yelled. "P-Please I mean no harm, I-I just needed a place to stay!" Arthur protested.

"I'll give you a fucking place to stay!" the shadow yelled. Arthur felt something large grab the collar of his shirt and lift him into the air, "No! No please! NO!" Arthur yelled in fear as the creature dragged him away, leaving the terrified objects behind in the darkness.

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**And thus we finally meet Beast!Romano! I'm sure you can tell by his language... the rest of the cast is pretty obvious; like the alley cats in Aristocats, some just SCREAM Hetalia. I know all you FrUK fans are gonna complain that I didn't make Arthur Cogsworth since that fits perfectly; but Austria actually fits too if you think about it. And he and France have fought before, so it's not completely weird. That...and I like to watch Arthur in pain *shot***

**Yes I know, Hungary is NOT Sealand's mother! That's why I made Finland and Sweden the milk and sugar since those two are always together and their still related to tea-serving. Get it? (Hanatamago will be appearing soon too!)**

**And yes...Feli is a wolf. Let me explain; he got most of the curse Romano got since he's related to him. If you noticed in the movie, the beast is the only animal-like thing in the whole castle, so I figured Feli should be some kind of animal too, so I made him a wolf. So he technically is a beast too being a wolf and all, but since he's the happy loving one, he didn't become ugly like Romano...he got pretty lucky if you ask me. **

**I'll touch up on the Italy brothers relationship later when the whole 'falling in love' thing starts to develop. If you still don't get it, just PM me.**

******I'm also doing a kind of combination of the movie and the stage musical of this story, like the whole scarf thing. There will be more significant changes later.**

**Again, vote on my profile so I can start the PoC story!**

**Review if you want MOAR!**


	4. A Promise is Made

**Alright, time to get the plot moving! Get ready for some super-fluffy family!USUK-ness X3**

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Chapter 4

Amelia sighed as she hung the laundry out to dry, her gaze occasionally looking towards the road. It had been three days since her father left, so he should be back by now. Maybe he had gotten lost or something; Amelia just hoped he wasn't hurt. Well, at least she could enjoy the peaceful day, with nothing to bother her-

"Hey Amelia!"

Amelia cursed her bad luck as she turned to the familiar voice with a strained smile, "Hello Gilbert, what are you doing here?" she asked. "Nothing much, just here to see you," he said with his cocky smirk; he was up to something, her girl instincts could feel it. Gilbert walked up to her, "You know there's not a girl in town who wouldn't want to be in your shoes," he said, "Because this is the day your dreams come true!"

Amelia froze, a bad feeling beginning to stir inside her, "What do you know about my dreams Gilbert?" she asked slowly and unsurely. Gilbert laughed, "Plenty! You've been wondering if you'll ever be a wife!" he said. "What?!" she cried.

"As you know a girl's job is to…extend the family tree," Gilbert went on, ignoring her outburst, "Let's face it, you're the only one for me, so you can 'extend' with me!" he said. Amelia's eyes widened; was he…oh God no, was he _proposing _to her?!

Gilbert swung his arm around her, "So Amelia; is the answer 'yes' or 'oh, yes'?" he asked. Amelia smiled nervously, struggling what to say, "I-I'm sorry Gilbert, but…I just don't deserve you!" she said. Gilbert removed his arm and scoffed, "True, who does?" Amelia took advantage of his obliviousness right then, "But thanks for asking!" she said quickly and ran inside the house at the speed of light.

It took Gilbert a minute to realize that he had just been turned down. Gilbird flew down from a nearby tree and chirped as if to say, 'How'd it go?' Gilbert frowned for a moment, before smirking again, "Make no mistake Gilbird; Amelia will be my awesome wife…eventually," he said before walking off.

After a few moments, Amelia peeked out of the doorway, "Is he gone?" she whispered to no one in particular. Seeing that the coast was clear she walked back outside, "I can't believe it; he actually asked me to marry him!" she said in disbelief as she walked back towards the laundry, "Me; the wife of that annoying, brainless…weirdo!" she ranted.

She then picked up a sheet and wrapped it around her head like a scarf that married women wear, "Can't you just see it? Ms. Amelia Beilschmidt, the little wife of the 'awesome' Gilbert Beilschmidt!" she mocked before frowning, "No freaking way; I don't want to get married (_especially _to that guy), I want something more than this life! I want adventure in far off places; to be a hero like in all my books! More than anything!" she said excitedly before sitting down on the ground and playing with a dandelion, "It would also be nice to have someone understand how it feels to be me…" she said sadly.

She stared at the sky as the sun was just beginning to set when she heard a familiar whinny coming from down the path. To her delight, a familiar white mare was running up the path carrying the same cart with her father's invention inside, "Minty!" Amelia exclaimed and went up to the horse that was finally beginning to calm down. Minty had been wandering around that god-forsaken forest for three days looking for the path home and had finally made it. She had also managed to evade the wolves somehow.

Amelia went up to the horse, but realized the absence of Arthur, "Minty, where's Dad?" she asked. Minty gave her a confused look, then her eyes widened in realization; she had been so focused on getting home that she hadn't realized that Arthur wasn't there! Amelia noticed the fear in her eyes, "Minty what happened to him?" she asked intently, "Oh no, we have to find him; Minty you have to take me to him!" she said frantically as she unhooked the cart from the horse.

After giving the tired horse some food and water, Amelia threw on her bright blue hooded cloak, mounted Minty and took off towards the forest. Luckily, Minty remembered what path they had taken before she had been frightened; she was a very smart horse. "Dad? Daddy?" Amelia called over and over as they walked, but there was no sign of the Brit anywhere. "He's got to be here somewhere," Amelia said to herself.

Amelia and Minty continued through the woods until Amelia noticed a tall shadow in the distance, "What could that be?" she wondered out loud, "Let's go check it out Minty," and she urged the horse to a trot towards the shadow. The two eventually arrived and the huge castle stood before them. Night had now fallen and the castle looked more ominous than ever, "W-What is this place?" Amelia said shakily; she had never been a fan of haunted houses and such.

Minty apparently was thinking the same thing as she attempted to hastily turn around, "Whoa Minty! Steady girl! Steady!" Amelia called and dismounted to give her a reassuring pat on the nose, "Easy, it's okay," she soothed. Amelia cautiously went up to the gate and spotted a familiar green scarf lying on the ground causing her to let out a small gasp.

She quickly opened the gate and picked it up; it was the scarf she gave Arthur, "Dad…" she whispered; he had to be somewhere in that castle. Trying to hold her fear back, Amelia pulled her hood up and walked up the large wooden doors. They slowly creaked open and the frightened girl entered the castle, "Hello?" she called as the door shut behind her, "Is anyone h-here?"

The empty foyer felt like it was going to swallow her up, with the red tongue-like carpet leading to the large marble staircase. "Hello? Daddy? Are you here?" she called as she ascended the staircase.

* * *

"Mamma, Poppa, I saw a girl!" Peter said excitedly as he hopped towards the tired milk and sugar cups, "There's a girl in the castle right now!"

Tino sighed; all these years in this castle was starting to make them _all _delusional, "Peter, there's no girl in the castle; you were just seeing things," he said. Peter pouted, "But I _saw _her Mamma, I swear!" he protested. "That's enough, go wash up Peter," Berwald said.

The teacup hung his head and slowly hopped towards the sink that was full of warm soapy water when Feliciano burst into the kitchen, "Ve~! Ve~! You'll never guess what I saw! I saw a girl! There's a real girl in the castle!" he squealed excitedly, his wolf tail wagging like an excited little puppy.

Peter snapped out of his depression and jumped up and down happily, "See? See? I told you!"

* * *

Francis paced around on a small table in one of the castle's many rooms, "That poor man; he's been locked in that disgusting place for three days now," he said sadly.

"And whose fault is that?" Roderich asked sarcastically, "If you hadn't invited him inside in the first place he would have left!"

Francis rolled his eyes, "I was trying to be hospitable; it's been years since someone has come here," he said and the arguing commenced.

* * *

This castle was freaking _huge!_ Amelia was beginning to wonder if she would ever find her dad. "Dad?" she began to call a little louder as she entered a long hallway lined with many rooms, "Daddy where are you? Is anyone here?"

* * *

"You wine-drinking, womanizing, cheese-smelling-"

"Dad?"

Roderich stopped mid-rant and he and Francis whirled around to see a feminine figure pass the doorway. "Did you see that?" Francis asked. He and Roderich leapt off the table and peeked into the hallway to see Amelia walking further down the hallway, "It's a girl!" Francis exclaimed quietly, relieved that they weren't just seeing things.

"I know it's a girl!" Roderich retorted rolling his eyes. Francis smiled happily, "But don't you see, she could be the one we've been waiting for! She will break the spell!" he said dragging Roderich after her. Amelia continued down the hallway hoping to have given some kind of sign by now; there were hundreds of rooms in this hallway, where could she even start?

Francis and Roderich quietly snuck along the wall and opened the door that lead to the dungeon and Francis quickly hopped up the stairs while Roderich hid behind the door. Amelia whirled around seeing the open door, "Daddy?" she asked and walked inside. She spotted a moving light traveling up the staircase, "Hello? Is someone there?" she asked, but the light continued to move, "Wait! I'm looking for my Dad; could you…" she trailed off as the stairwell was empty, the light coming from a candelabra that was sitting in a small alcove in the wall.

"That's weird, I could've sworn I heard someone," she said frowning. Amelia continued up the stairs until she reached the top where many cells lined the wall. "Is anyone here?" Amelia called.

"Amelia? Is that you?" A familiar British voice called.

"Daddy!" Amelia gasped as she spotted her father curled up in one of the cells. Amelia grabbed a torch on the wall and put it in a holder next to the door so she could see better in the dark dungeon. Arthur's green eyes filled with relief and shock as he felt his daughter's warm hands grasp his own through the bars, "H-How did you find me?" he asked. After three days in this hell hole he had started to lose hope; he had never been so happy to see anyone in his life.

Amelia flinched as she held her father's freezing hands; his face was pale and he shook from the bitter cold that his thin cloak could barely protect him from, "You're hands are like ice; I've got to get you out of here," Amelia said. Arthur then let out some rough coughs and Amelia knew he was sick. Amelia scanned the area for some way to open the door, "Who did this to you?" she asked firmly; she wanted to give the bastard who did this to her father a piece of her mind.

At her words, Arthur's relief turned to fear, "Amelia, you have to leave this place!" he said urgently. "What are you talking about?" Amelia asked. "There's no time to explain; you have to leave now!" Arthur responded, nearly panicking, but Amelia shook her head, "No, I'm not leaving you!" she said firmly.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" A booming voice yelled as something large grabbed Amelia's shoulder and whirled her around roughly causing her hood to fall down and the torch to fall from its holder and into a puddle, "Amelia!" Arthur cried in alarm as darkness once again swallowed the dungeon except for a patch of moonlight shining through a hole in the roof.

"Who's there?! Wh-Who are you?!" Amelia cried, her heart pounding against her ribcage as she spotted a large shadow move about the darkness, "The master of this castle," the shadow answered as he hovered above her. Amelia swallowed her fear, "I-I've come for my Dad; please let him go, he's sick!" she stated, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

The shadow only growled, "Then the bastard shouldn't have trespassed here!" he said loudly causing Amelia to back against the door. "B-But he could die! Please let him go, I-I'll do anything!" she protested.

The shadow turned away, "He's my prisoner now; there's nothing you can do," he said in a low voice as he began to walk away. Amelia's eyes widened as she racked her brain for something she could do, "There must be something I can…" she trailed off when an idea sprang into her mind, "Wait!"

The shadow stopped and Amelia hesitated. She always said she wanted to be a hero; if she wanted to protect people, she would start by protecting her father, "Take me instead," she stated allowing her face to be shown in the moonlight. "What?" Arthur asked, hoping he had heard wrong. "Che!" the shadow scoffed before pausing to comprehend what she had said, "You would…take his place?" he asked almost in disbelief.

"Amelia, w-what are you doing?" Arthur asked weakly, grasping the cell bars. "I'm being a hero Dad," Amelia whispered with a sad smile before turning back to the shadow, "If I stay with you, will you let him go?" she asked. "_Si_," the shadow nodded, "But… you must promise to stay here forever," Amelia hesitated before finally saying, "Come into the light,"

The shadow hesitated for a moment before stepping into the patch of moonlight. Amelia's eyes widened as an enormous and hideous beast towered above her, with dark brown fur, sharp fangs, claws, and horns and a small curl on the side of his head. Amelia gasped at the sight and turned away from the frightening creature.

Arthur grasped her shoulders through the bars, "Amelia you can't do this! I won't let you!" he said loudly. Amelia looked sadly at her father and then back at the beast before standing up. She stepped into the moonlight and forced herself to look directly at the creature; despite the cost, Amelia had to do what had to be done. She took a deep shaky breath, "I…I promise," she said.

"Done," The beast said and went past her towards the cell door. Amelia fell to her knees at what she had done; she was snapped out of her stupor when Arthur knelt next to her and took her hands, "Amelia, I've lived my life, you can't-" Arthur was cut off as the beast grabbed the back of his cloak and dragged him towards the door, "No!" Amelia cried as their hands were ripped apart.

"Amelia!"

"Dad!"

The beast dragged Arthur outside as the Brit struggled desperately, "Please don't do this! She's all I have left! My daughter-" "She's not your concern anymore bastard!" the beast snapped before throwing him into a carriage and slamming the door shut, "Take him to the village!" he ordered before retreating back into the castle.

Arthur stood and struggled to keep balance as the carriage came to life and began to walk away on its own, "No! NO!" He ran up to the door where a small window showed the castle getting farther away, "Let me out! Let me out this instant!" Arthur yelled as he pounded on the door.

As the castle got smaller, Arthur became more and more desperate, "Please, let me out! Please! I'm begging you! Let me out! Amelia! AMELIA!" he screamed. Finally, his pounding ceased and he sank to the floor of the carriage, it was hopeless. First he had lost Emily, and now Amelia was in the hands of that…that _monster_…and it was all his fault.

Tears pricked his eyes as he placed a hand over his mouth to repress his sobs while the carriage took him farther and farther away from his beloved daughter; his darling, sweet, brave daughter…who he would never see again.

* * *

Amelia watched from the small window as the carriage holding her father got smaller and smaller in the distance. When it finally disappeared, Amelia finally broke down into small sobs. The beast climbed back up the stairs towards the dungeon and Francis who was still in the stairwell spoke up, "Um…Master?" he asked quietly. "What?!" the beast snapped.

Francis flinched and struggled to be brave, "Well…since the mademoiselle is going to be with us for a while now…maybe it would be better to…offer her a more comfortable room," he suggested, but was met with a loud growl as the beast walked off, "Or maybe not," the frightened candelabra resolved quickly.

Amelia wiped away her tears as the beast stood in the doorway, "You didn't even let me say good-bye!" Amelia said angrily, her eyes still moist, "I'll never see him again, and I couldn't even say good-bye…" she said sadly. The beast was quiet for a moment, a look of...guilt (?) crossing his face, "I'll show you to your room," he muttered.

Amelia looked up in confusion, "My room? But…aren't I…your prisoner?" she asked. The beast frowned impatiently, "You _want _to stay in the god damned tower?" he asked harshly. "No," Amelia squeaked. "Then follow me," the beast said and walked out of the room with Amelia following behind.

The beast held Francis to light the way as he and Amelia walked through the winding halls of the castle. Amelia tried to ignore the horrifying images of the statues and carvings on the wall and focused on staying behind the beast. It was then that the girl felt truly alone and homesick; a silent tear fell down her cheek, how was she going to survive here?

Francis and the beast noticed her sadness, "Say something to her," Francis whispered. The beast peeked at her over his shoulder hesitant at what to say, "I uh…I hope you like here," he said as calmly as he could. He looked at Francis who motioned for him to continue, "You live here now so go wherever you want; except the West Wing," he said.

"What's in the Wes-" "It's forbidden!" the beast snapped cutting her off, obviously not wanting to talk about it. He continued walking with a snarl and Amelia followed until they arrived at a bedroom.

The beast opened the door and she slowly walked in, "My servants will be here to attend you if you need anything," the beast said. Francis, who was still in his paw, nudged him slightly, "Dinner, invite her to dinner tomorrow," he whispered.

The beast, not used to asking for things felt his anger return, "You…will join me for dinner tomorrow night; and that's not a fucking request!" he yelled before slamming the door. Amelia, who was frozen in her spot until the door slammed, finally letting her emotions of sadness and pure fear consume her. She threw herself onto the large bed, sobs racking her body as she eventually cried herself to sleep.

* * *

**Me: ;_; Poor Amie...now forced to stay in a castle with a constantly cursing beast...but who cares? She's the HERO! She'll be just fine!**

**Amelia: Hell yeah I'm the hero!**

**Me: *high fives* Yep, and you're going to be doing epic totally un-damsel-in-distress things in later chapters! (besides the romance of course) Because America will ALWAYS be the seme in my eyes, male or female! And I don't mean for smut, I mean personality and strength wise (meaning she's not some clutzy Mary-Sue!)**

**Amelia: FUCK YEAH! **

**Me: Remember to review mah peeps! Peace out!**


	5. Pros and Cons of Castle Hospitality

**Alright since I'm having writers block AGAIN I'll keep you guys busy with this. Time to meet all the magical servants of the castle!**

**And FYI, I'm hopefully going to be updating Ara Waterlily soon so you can look forward to that as well!**

**And yes Reba G, USUK is my OTP, but Romerica is my second cause it's adorable and I wanted to give it a shot! I'm not sure if I'll be writing any USUK at the moment, but my one-shots in 'Tales of America or Alfred f Jones' will have a couple soon!**

* * *

Chapter 5

Amelia slept well into the morning, smiling as she dreamed. She was back at home in the village. Her father was smiling and doing outside chores and Minty was grazing in the grassy fields. But that dream was too good to last; the chirping of birds caused her to yawn and slowly open her eyes. She was sore from sleeping in a curled up position for so long and her cloak and outfit were wrinkled. Her eyes widened and she sat up as she recalled last night's events and a lump formed in her throat. She looked around the large room while trying to keep her emotions in check, and she had to admit, it was really nice.

The walls were sky blue which matched the blue comforter covering the white silk sheets on the bed. A canopy hung over the bed with blue curtains and many fluffy pillows lay at the head of the bed. There was a large wardrobe next to her bed and a dresser with a vanity across the room against the wall that was clean and holding necessary objects like brushes and makeup (which Amelia never really bothered with).

She got up and hung her cloak on the coat hanger that was next to the door and walked over to the vanity, looking herself over in the mirror. With nothing else to do, she took out her star barrette, picked up the tomato red hairbrush lying on the dresser and began to brush her tangled hair. As she brushed a gentle Hispanic voice spoke from nowhere, "Ah, you have very soft hair _chica_,"

Amelia's eyes widened as she stopped brushing, her eyes darting around to find the source of the voice; had someone snuck in without her noticing? "Down here _Senorita_!" the voice called. Amelia froze and slowly looked at the hairbrush as she turned it around; on the flat surface of the hairbrush were a pair of green eyes and a tuft of brown hair in the top.

Amelia let out a squeak and dropped the brush on the dresser as she backed away. To her horror, the brush stood upright on its handle and smiled, freaking _smiled _at her! "_Holá!_ Don't be afraid, I'm harmless I swear," the brush said calmly. "Y-You can talk…" Amelia exclaimed quietly.

"That I can," the brush said completely oblivious to her shocked state, "My name is Antonio." Amelia, unfortunately, was still losing it, "B-But…h-how," she stuttered when there was a knock at the door causing her to jump, "W-Who is it?" she called cautiously, hoping it wasn't that…creature again. "It's Elizaveta dear!" A gentle female voice called.

Feeling a bit more at ease (and forgetting about the talking brush for a moment) Amelia went over and opened the door to find nobody there. "I thought you would like a cup of tea," the voice said again, but from at Amelia's feet. Amelia looked down in shock to see the talking teapot hopping in followed by the small teacup Peter and the milk and sugar holders, Tino and Berwald. Amelia backed up in fright, "Y-you…y-you're-" Amelia was cut off as she bumped into the wardrobe which sprung to life as well with a small cry of alarm from the impact, "Careful little one!" she said with a Russian sounding accent.

Amelia backed away again and fell onto the bed, "H-how is this possible?" she asked. The brush (Antonio) hopped off the dresser and came towards her, "If I were you after seeing this, I'd say lots of things are possible," he said. "I told you she was pretty," the teacup said shyly to Elizaveta.

"How much sugar do you want?" Tino asked as he poured a bit of milk into the teacup, "Uh…one please," Amelia answered. Berwald wordlessly placed one spoonful of sugar into the teacup and stirred it, and Peter slowly hopped towards Amelia. Amelia sat on the floor as the cup neared her and picked it up, "Thanks," she said quietly and took a sip from the small cup. It reminded her so much of her father that it was taking all her strength to not start crying again.

"That was a very brave thing you did for your father," Elizaveta said, breaking the silence. Tino nodded, "We all think so; you must love him very much," he said kindly. Amelia looked down sadly as she held Peter in her hand, "I do, but I'll never see him again; I've lost all my dreams just like that," she said. "Don't worry _amiga_, it will turn out right in the end," Antonio said with a smile. Amelia smiled back feeling very comforted by their words; how could such nice people- er…objects work for such a cruel beast?

"Ve~! Is she awake?" A new voice asked from outside the door. "Yes she is Feli!" Peter answered. Amelia nearly dropped the poor cup when the Italian wolf entered the room happily. Talking wolves? Now she had seen everything. The wolf came up to her and sat down, "My name's Feliciano, but you can call me Feli if you want!" he introduced himself excitedly.

Amelia smiled awkwardly at the wolf's happy attitude, "Nice to meet you Feli, I'm Amelia," she responded slowly (for God sakes, she was talking to a _wolf!_). Feli nodded, "I thought you might be hungry, so I brought you this!" he said. He went out the door for a minute and soon came back in with a walking footstool behind him with a small plate of pasta with a fork on it on his back. "That's Hanatamago; he's our dog!" Peter said happily.

Hanatamago walked towards her with his tassel tail wagging and Amelia realized that she was a bit hungry since it was about noon now, "Thanks," she said and picked the plate off the stool. Amelia took a bite and her eyes widened; this was the best pasta she had ever tasted! "Is it good?" Feli asked and Amelia nodded causing the wolf to beam. She finished it quickly and put the plate back on the ground, "Alright, we better be one our way; there's chores to be done," Elizaveta said. "Come on Peter," Tino called. "Bye Amelia!" Peter chirruped as he hopped out of her hand and out the door with the others.

With nothing else to do, Amelia spent the next few hours talking with Antonio and the wardrobe who introduced herself as Katyusha; it turned out they were both very friendly. After a while though, Antonio left the room to visit Feli leaving Amelia with the large friendly wardrobe.

As the sun began to set, Katyusha checked the time, "Oh my, dinner is going to be soon; we better dress you up!" she said. Amelia froze as she remembered the beast's invitation… or demand was the more proper term. Her appetite suddenly went sour as she remembered how horrid and mean that thing was while Katyusha went through her drawers looking for a good outfit for Amelia to wear.

"Ah here; you'll look lovely in this one!" she exclaimed happily as she held out a nice light magenta dress that was very formal looking, but still a bit informal. Amelia hesitated before pushing the dress away kindly, "That's kind of you, but I'm not going to dinner," she stated earning a gasp from Katyusha, "But you _must!"_ the wardrobe insisted, but before she could say anymore, the door opened and Roderich entered, clearing his throat, "Dinner is served," he announced.

* * *

The beast paced the floor in front of the set dinner table as Francis, Elizaveta, and Antonio watched from atop the mantle, "What's taking her so fucking long?" The beast growled, "I told her to come, so where the hell is she?!"

"Try to be patient sir; the poor thing lost her father and her freedom just last night," Elizaveta said. The beast only rolled his eyes, "I gave her the whole day; she should be over it by now," he muttered. Antonio decided to change the subject, "Sir, have you thought that this girl might break the spell?" he asked. "Of course I have! I'm not a fucking idiot!" The beast yelled.

Antonio smiled, "Good, it's simple then; you fall in love with her, she falls in love with you… and _poof_! The spell will be broken before midnight!" he said cheerfully. Francis rolled his eyes, "_L'amour _is not that simple _mon ami; _these things are delicate and take time," he explained. "But…the rose has already begun to wilt!" Antonio said worriedly.

The beast growled, "It's no use," he muttered, "She's so…so beautiful… and I'm…just look at me!" he yelled glaring at the objects. Elizaveta smiled softly, "You just have to help her see past all that," she said. "Yeah, but I don't know how," The beast growled. Elizaveta frowned and jumped off the mantle, "Well, you could start by acting more like a proper gentleman!" she said. Francis smiled and followed suite, "_Oui, _you must seduce her with your Italian charm!" he said. "But don't frighten her," Elizaveta added. Antonio jumped off the mantle as well, "_Si_, give her sincere compliments!" he said. "But above all…" Elizaveta said before the other two joined her, "**You must control your temper!" **

The beast nodded hesitantly, when the sound of the doorknob turning caught their attention, "Here she comes!" Francis whispered, and the door opened revealing…Roderich.

"Good evening," the clock said nervously. The beast frowned as no one else was coming through the door, "Well? Where the hell is she?" he asked dangerously. Roderich cleared his throat nervously as his eyes scanned the floor, "W-Well…uh the girl…she uh…well…the circumstances…being what they are…" Roderich finally sighed and said, "She's not coming…"

"WHAT?!" The beast burst out of the room and ran at top speed towards the girl's room with the four frantic servants chasing after him to make sure he didn't go too far. He arrived at Amelia's room and pounded on the door, "I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO COME DOWN TO DINNER!" he roared. "I'm not hungry!" Amelia yelled back. The beast growled loudly; no one ever stood up to him, _ever,_ "You come down now or I'll BREAK THIS FUCKING DOOR DOWN!" he yelled.

Francis knew that now was the time to intervene, "Uh Master…I could be wrong…but I don't think that is the best way to win her affections," he said slowly. Roderich nodded, "Please, at least _attempt _to act like a gentleman," he pleaded. "But she's being so god damn _difficult!_" The beast hissed. "Gently now, gently," Elizaveta coaxed.

The beast rolled his eyes and spoke softly, "Will you come down to dinner?" he asked plainly. "No!" Amelia replied sharply. The beast frowned and pointed at the door to prove his point and Roderich shook his head, "Come now; suave and gentile," he said. The beast gritted his teeth, "It would give me great pleasure…if you would join me for dinner," he ground out, and looked at Antonio who mouthed the word 'please,' and the beast got the message, "Please," he added, but Amelia wasn't backing down, "No thank you!" she retorted hotly and the beast finally snapped, "You can't stay in there forever bastard!" he yelled.

"Yes I can!" Amelia responded. "No you can't!" the beast shot back. "Watch me!" Amelia challenged, but the beast had had enough, "Fine, then fucking STARVE for all I care!" he exploded causing the servants to flinch before he turned to them, "If the brat doesn't eat with me then she doesn't at all!" he said harshly before storming away and slamming the door behind him.

"Well, that went well," Elizaveta sighed. "I'll see if I can do anything," Antonio said calmly before going up to the door, "_Senorita, _it's Antonio, could you let me in?" he called. After a moment, the door opened a crack and the brush slipped inside. One the door shut again Roderich turned to Francis, "Francis, keep watch at the door and alert me at once if there is any change!" he ordered. Francis nodded and stepped in front of the door and Elizaveta sighed, "Well, we better go clean up," she said and hopped off with Roderich.

Meanwhile, the beast was not in a very happy mood (as usual). He burst into the West Wing startling poor Feli, who was sitting in front of a tall mirror, and began knocking things around the already destroyed room, "I ask nicely and she refuses; that little bitch!" he snarled, "What does she want me to do; fucking beg?!"

He went over to a small table and picked up a green hand mirror, "Show me the girl!" he ordered. The mirror glowed green as an image of Amelia sitting in her bedroom appeared. Antonio and Katyusha were on either side of her, talking to her, "He may seem mean, but he's a real nice guy once you get to know him," Antonio was saying. Katyusha nodded, "Why don't you give him a chance?" she suggested. Amelia only shook her head, "I don't want to give him a chance and don't want to get to know him! I don't _anything_ to do with that _jerk_!" she yelled.

The beast ignored the pang in his heart and placed the mirror back on the table, "I'm a fucking idiot, she'll never see me as anything but a monster…just like anyone with a brain would," he grumbled before his eyes fell on the glass cover in the middle of the table that covered a hovering, wilting rose that glowed a dim pink color. A single petal fell from the flower and lost its glow as it joined the few other dead petals below the rose. "It's hopeless…" the beast said sadly and Feli took this opportunity to sneak out of the room.

* * *

Amelia slowly peeked out of her room into the dark hallway. It had been a few hours since she stood up to that monster. She felt proud for having stood up to something as horrifying as that beast, but that didn't change the fact that she hadn't eaten dinner. Maybe if she found the kitchen she could get a little snack; something to help her last the night.

She wandered through the halls and went downstairs looking for any sign of a kitchen when she spotted a light coming from a doorway. She heard the sound of clanking metal…like pots and pans; jackpot!

She opened the door and spotted Elizaveta on top of a counter talking to a talking clock, but at this point she was pretty used to it. The teapot spotted her and smiled, "Oh, good evening my dear!" she said. The clock whirled around and smiled, "Splendid to see you out and about," he said, "I am Roderich, head of the household," he introduced himself.

Amelia nodded and knelt down to shake his hand, but Francis quickly butted in and took her hand. "This is Francis," Roderich said with disdain and the candelabra grinned, "_Au chante _mademoiselle," he said before kissing her hand; Amelia smiled nervously and made a mental note to keep an eye on this one. "So, is there anything we can do for you?" Roderich asked.

"Well, I'm a little hungry," Amelia said. Elizaveta's face and the other talking kitchen appliances visibly brightened at her words, "Well, then we'll have something whipped up for you in no time!" the teapot said happily. "Remember what the master said!" Roderich hissed, but Elizaveta scoffed, "Come now, I'm about to let the poor girl go hungry!"

Roderich rolled his eyes, "Very well, a small bite to eat and then-" he started to say but Francis cut him off, "Roderich, I'm surprised at you!" he said in shock, "She is not a prisoner, she's our guest; we must make her feel welcome here!" he said happily, "Right this way _mon cher_," he said and led the girl to the dining hall.

"Very well, just keep it down; you know what will happen if the master finds out!" Roderich said worriedly. "Do not worry _mon ami;" _Francis reassured before giving the clock a cocky smirk, "But what is dinner without a little _music?" _he asked before slamming the door in a stunned Roderich's face causing to fly against the wall. Amelia followed Francis into a large hall where an enormous table sat in the middle of the room with a single chair at the head.

Amelia sat down the chair as the lights dimmed and Francis stood a few yards away from her with a spotlight on him, "Mademoiselle Amelia, it is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure that we welcome you tonight!" he announced as he picked up a candle hood to use as a cap, "Now, sit back and relax as the dining room proudly presents…your dinner!" he said as a few covered plates appeared in another spotlight. Amelia smiled in interest at what was going on as Francis began to sing:

_Be our guest, be our guest, put our service to the test!_

_Tie your napkin 'round your neck cheri, and we provide the rest!_

_Soup du jour, hot hor d'oeurve,_

_Why we only live to serve!_

A plate full of small d'oeurves were brought up to Amelia for her to taste:

_Try the gray stuff it's delicious!_

_Don't believe me? Ask the dishes!_

A number of china plates and silverware rolled out onto the table as a chorus began to harmonize with Francis:

_They can sing, they can dance, after all Miss, this is France!_

_And the dinner here is never second best!_

_Go on, unfold your menu, take a glance and then you'll_

_Be our guest,_

_Oui, or guest,_

_Be our guest!_

Different dishes full of different foods began to parade in front of Amelia who picked up a fork to taste each dish that tasted amazing:

_Beef ragout, cheese soufflé, pie and pudding en flambé!_

_We'll prepare and serve with flair,_

_A culinary cabaret!_

_You're alone and you're scared,_

_But the banquet's all prepared!_

_No one's gloomy or complaining while the flatware's entertaining!_

_We tell jokes, I do tricks with my fellow candlesticks!_

Francis was then joined on the table with a few other little candlesticks who began to hop around the table while more appliances began to join in harmony:

_And it's all in perfect taste that you can bet!_

_Go on and lift your glass, you've won your own free pass,_

_To be our guest!_

Francis took over:

_If you're stressed, it's fine dining we suggest!_

Everyone else joined in:

_Be our guest! Be our guest! Be our guest!_

The music suddenly took a melancholy turn as a sad tune began to play while Francis sang:

_Life is so unnerving for a servant who's not serving,_

_He's not whole without a soul to wait upon._

Francis looked out as if he was gazing into a past memory:

_Ah, those good old days when we were useful,_

_Suddenly those good old days are gone._

The other appliances all bowed their heads in sadness as they remembered the good days when they were humans, before the curse stole away their happiness:

_Ten years, we've been rusting, needing so much more than dusting._

_Needing exercise, a chance to use our skills._

_Most days we just lay around the castle._

The music suddenly turned upbeat again as everyone smiled at Amelia:

_Flabby, fat and lazy,_

_You walked in and oopsy-daisy!_

Elizaveta then took over from the kitchen as things were being washed:

_It's a guest, it's a guest!_

_Sakes alive well I'll be blessed!_

_Wines's been poured and thank the lord, I've had the napkins freshly pressed!_

_With dessert she'll want tea, _

_And my dear, that's fine with me!_

_While the cups do their soft-shoeing, I'll be bubbling, I'll be brewing!_

Elizaveta jumped onto the hot stove to heat the tea:

_I'll get warm, piping hot!_

_Heaven sakes, is that a spot?_

_Clean it up, we want the company impressed!_

A napkin quickly wiped down Elizaveta before jumping onto the tea cart with Peter, Tino and Berwald:

_We've got a lot to do!_

_Is it one lump or two?_

Elizaveta poured the warm tea into Peter and Amelia took it gratefully as more and more appliances (even Roderich) joined in to the song:

_For you, our guest!_

_She's our guest!_

_She's our guest!_

_Be our guest!_

The song began to get even more energy and bounciness as it continued:

_Be our guest! Be our guest!_

_Our command is your request!_

_It's been years since we've had anybody here, and we're obsessed!_

_With your meal, with your ease,_

_Yes indeed, we aim to please!_

_While the candlelight's still glowing,_

_Let us help you, we'll keep going!_

Francis and all the other appliances appeared at the very end of the table in huge arrangement of dishes, food, and silverware as Francis put on his candle hood as a hat:

_Course by course! One by one!_

'_Till you shout, 'Enough I'm done!'_

_Then we'll sing you off to sleep as you digest!_

_Tonight you'll prop your feet,_

_But for now let's eat up_

_Be our guest! Be our guest!_

_Be our guest!_

_Please be~! Our~! Guest~_

* * *

**This song ALWAYS makes you want to dance! If I had to include one song from the movie it would definitely be this one and if the Hetalia cast was singing it to me I'd be grinning like an idiot!**

**Lovino, watch your language around your guests! Why am I even trying? When the curse is broken he'll STILL be cursing his head off.**

***head desk* Oh God...did I really make Spain a hairbrush? Seriously, I couldn't think of ANYTHING to turn him into! At first I thought a sword, but that was too...well...weird and not household appliance-y enough (did I really just say that...?)**

**Next chappie will be the always scary, sneaking into the one place the beast told you not to go just because your nosy and curious! But trust me, this chapter will be ten times different than the movie; you'll know what I mean when we get there.**

**Review everyone! It makes me happy! :D**


	6. The Secrets of the West Wing

**Alright, this is my favorite part in the whole movie! And it's going to be VERY different from the original movie you all know so hold onto your hats!**

**And FYI, we just finished Be Our Guest, just to let u know...**

* * *

Chapter 6

Amelia laughed and danced from her chair as the appliances wrapped up their song in a huge finale. Amelia clapped, "That was amazing!" she said happily. Roderich and Francis smiled and bowed, "_Merci, _mademoiselle," Francis said. Roderich nodded, "Yes, very good work everyone!" he praised. He then looked at the clock hands on his face and saw the late time, "Oh my, it's quite late; I believe it's time to go to bed," he said, stifling a yawn.

But Amelia bounced in her chair, brimming with new energy; this place really wasn't so bad after all, "There's no way I can go to sleep now! It's my first time in an enchanted castle and I'm _loving _it!" she said happily. Francis and Roderich smiled nervously, "Enchanted? Who said anything about this castle being enchanted?" Francis asked. "I knew you would mess this up somehow!" Roderich spat, smacking him upside the head.

Amelia smirked, "Really? Every castle has talking clocks, candles, and teapots?" she asked sarcastically, "I don't read a lot of fairy tales without learning a thing or two about magic." Francis and Roderich nodded, seeing her point and she got up, "I'd like to explore a bit, if that's okay," she said. "Would you like a tour?" Francis asked, but Roderich stopped him, "I don't think that's a good idea; we can't have her wandering into _certain places…_" he said quietly and Francis seemed to agree.

But Amelia wasn't going down without a fight, "Maybe _you _could show me around," she said to Roderich, "I bet as 'head of the household' you know _everything_ about this place," she said sweetly. A light pink dusted Roderich's cheeks as he fumbled for words, "W-well, a-actually…yes I do," he said with a prideful grin.

* * *

Amelia walked down the corridor alongside Francis and Roderich who was talking about the history of the castle. After a while, Amelia noticed a remarkably dark hallway. Quietly, she crept away from Francis and Roderich and walked into a dark foyer, like the one at the main entrance only smaller and much dustier. Amelia walked towards the stair case to ascend it when Francis and Roderich quickly appeared at her feet, blocking her path, "What's up there?" Amelia asked.

"Oh nothing; the west wing has nothing to offer, nothing at all," Roderich said quickly. "So _that's _the West Wing," Amelia said with new curiosity as Roderich earned a glare from Francis, "I wonder what he's hiding up there?" she wondered out loud. Francis gave a nervous laugh, "Hiding? The master is not hiding anything!" he said.

"Then it wouldn't be forbidden, would it?" Amelia said, stepping past the two only to have them appear in front of her again. "Perhaps, you would like to see something else; we have some lovely tapestries in the armory," Roderich said, but Amelia was too intrigued by the dark hallway, "Maybe later," she droned, stepping past them again to have them appear one more time, growing a bit more desperate, "What about the gardens or…or the library?" Francis asked. Amelia's eyes lit up at the single word, "You have a library?" she asked.

Francis and Roderich both smiled in relief, "Yes, yes we do!" Roderich said. "Oui, with books! Lots of books!" Francis said and the two hopped off down the hallway. Amelia followed for a bit before stopping and with a mischievous smile, turned back and ascended the staircase towards the West Wing. She knew the beast had told her not to come here, but he wasn't the boss of her; besides, what could be so important about it that he would keep people from coming here? Plus, everyone knew that when someone tells you not to open a door, it's just begging to be opened.

She wandered down the dark hallway until she came to a large doorway. Making sure no one was following her, she opened it a crack and slipped inside. The room was dark with the cold winter wind from the open balcony at the back of the room blowing inside. The place was completely trashed; the curtains were torn to shreds, hardly anything was left of the furniture and anything else was strewn about the floor.

Amelia walked through the room and gasped as she stepped on something soft. She lifted her foot to see a canvas on the ground. It was torn very badly, but she could make out two figures together in the painting that looked very identical with their hair and strange curl on one side. One of the figures arms was around the other's shoulders in a happy gesture; if their faces were still intact it would be assumed that they were very happy.

But before Amelia could look further, a light pink glow caught her eye. She looked to the side and her eyes widened at the sight; a glowing rose was hovering above a table inside a glass cover. Amelia walked over to it and looked at it from a distance; something told her that this flower was not meant to be touched. The rose seemed to respond to her presence and a small pink beam came from the flower. She followed it to see that it was pointing to a tall mirror that was partly covered with a sheet.

Slowly, she walked over to it and pulled the sheet off to fully reveal the mirror. To her surprise, it was completely intact without a scratch on it. The edges of the mirror were made of pure gold and were covered with intricate designs. She looked at her reflection for a while until it suddenly vanished and another took its place. Amelia let out a small gasp and stepped back a bit as another person appeared in the mirror where her reflection should be.

It was a man that looked a few years older than her; he had icy blue eyes, slicked back blonde hair, wore average commoner clothing and looked very buff and muscular. The man had a look of surprise on his face when he saw Amelia and placed his hand on the glass to get a little closer. Amelia went back up to him with a confused look and slowly placed her hand over his on the mirror; the man's eyes had a dull look of sadness to them making Amelia feel sorry for him. She offered a small smile to let the man know that she was a friend, and the shocked look slowly melted off the man's face.

Amelia looked at her hand that was placed on the glass over the man's; she could almost feel him through the thin glass. This man clearly wasn't supposed to be a reflection as he was moving on his own inside the mirror…it was almost like he was trapped.

The man's face then became alarmed as a shadow loomed over them. Amelia turned around to see the beast hovering above her, his eyes full of anger and betrayal, "What the hell are you doing here?!" he demanded. Amelia backed away a few steps, bumping into a table in the process, "I-I was just-" "I told you not to come here!" the beast yelled raising his paw with his sharp claws, "You disobeyed me you damn bastard!" and his claws came down towards her.

With pure adrenaline driving her, Amelia fumbled around on the table until her hands found a large shard of glass. She slashed the air with the shard just as the beast's claws were about to slice her open and the beast let out a roar. Amelia looked up to see that the shard in her hand was now covered with blood and there was a somewhat big gash on the beast's arm that was starting to drip blood. The beast looked at the gash on his arm, breathing heavily and dangerously making Amelia drop the shard. She watched in horror as the beasts eyes turned from gold to a beady black. The beast went on all fours and growled before randomly leaping at the wall and tearing at it with his claws.

Amelia slowly backed towards the door; what was going on? The door to the West Wing opened again and Feli ran in, "What's going on?" he asked frantically and his eyes widened as they fell on Amelia and comprehended that situation. Before either one could say anything the beast lunged towards them and they barely managed to get out of the way.

Amelia got a better look at the beasts eyes at that time and understood what had happened; he was all riled up and his mind was now that of a true beast. He had lost control (hopefully temporarily) of whatever it was that held his humanity. "Run Amelia! Hurry!" Feli cried; Amelia didn't have to be told twice. She sprang to her feet and ran out the door; she ran down the hallway for a bit until the sound of the door slamming open caused her to stop.

She pressed herself against a pillar that was part of the wall hoping to hide herself when she heard a yelp, "Feli!" she whispered in horror before hearing the thunderous sound of the beast running down the hall. "What's going on?" a familiar voice asked. Amelia looked up in horror to see Francis and Roderich coming down the hall towards her. She peeked from her hiding place and saw the beast running at top speed towards the two objects causing them to freeze in horror.

Quick as a flash Amelia leapt out from her hiding spot, grabbed them, and rolled out of the way just as the beast thundered past, his claws leaving huge marks in the floor where the two servants had just stood. She looked down at the shivering Francis and Roderich in her arms, "You two okay?" she asked. They wordlessly nodded, a bit stunned that they were about an inch from death.

A whimper caused her head to snap up and she spotted Feli limping down the hall as fast as he could. One of his front legs was covered in blood and Amelia could see a few wooden splinters embedded in the open wounds. Amelia put Francis and Roderich on the ground knelt in front of Feli, "Are you alright?" she asked. "I-I think so…" the wolf said softly, tears brimming his eyes.

A loud crash was heard from further down the hall as well as a few screams of alarm and horror struck Amelia like an arrow. If the beast couldn't control himself, he might hurt or even destroy some of his servants without meaning to! Amelia sprang to her feet, "I've got to stop him," she said quietly before taking off down the hallway; she had started this by going into the West Wing in the first place and as a hero it was her responsibility.

She flew down the stairs and ran into the kitchen where it was absolute chaos. Glass objects were trying to get to a safe place where they wouldn't be broken as the beast rampaged around the place, breaking tables and counters that (thankfully) weren't alive. Amelia's eyes widened as she spotted Peter who was on the tea cart and looking frantically around for a way off. Tino cried out in horror as the beast swiped the cart, sending the small teacup flying through the air. Amelia quickly ran up and caught the small cup just in time, _'I've got to get him away from the castle; he'll destroy everything and every__**one**__ at this rate!' _ She thought frantically as an idea sprang to her mind.

She quickly placed Peter inside a cupboard and picked up a piece of wood from one of the splintered tables, "Hey! Beast boy!" she yelled, chucking the wood at the angry creature. The beast turned around angrily at the impact and Amelia waved to him, "Catch me if you can!" she taunted before running out the kitchen door. As fast as her legs could carry her, Amelia grabbed her cloak and headed for the main door, "Where are you going?" Francis called as he and Roderich had just arrived on the stairway.

Amelia grabbed the large door handle, "This guy is breaking everything in sight; I've got to get him away from here!" she explained as she opened the door to the chilling snowy winds outside. The beast burst out of the door and Amelia waved again, "Over here big guy!" she called and ran out the door. The moment she was out she put her thumb and index finger in her mouth and let out a loud whistle. With a short whinny, Minty cantered towards her and Amelia jumped onto her back just as the beast ran outside after her. "Go Minty!" Amelia yelled, snapping the reins and the horse took off through the gate and into the woods with the beast close behind.

Maybe if he got all his energy out he would calm down? Amelia could only hope she was right for doing this as she steered Minty through the deepening snow. The chase continued until there was a howl in the distance. Amelia looked around and saw a pack of wolves watching from all around them. Amelia cursed under her breath and urged Minty to go faster. The horse had no problem with it as she just wanted to get the hell away from this place and never look back.

Eventually, Amelia and Minty reached the crossroad that connected to the road that led back home when a loud familiar roar caused her to stop suddenly. Amelia looked behind her to see that the beast wasn't following them anymore and the howls and growls of wolves could be heard in the distance as well as the horrid sound of fangs biting into flesh.

On instinct, Amelia urged Minty back down the dark path and followed the sounds until she came to a snowy clearing where her eyes widened; the beast was fighting the wolves! His eyes were still beady black and he was still acting like an animal, but that didn't change the fact that he was getting slaughtered. Red blossomed on the snow as the beast rolled this way and that trying to throw the wolves off.

Amelia was about to steer Minty down a different path but she stopped herself. She looked back at the beast that seemed to be getting tired as more and more blood poured from the wound on his arm that Amelia gave him. Amelia looked back at the forest and then back at the beast as guilt filled her heart every second; it was _her _fault that this was happening to the beast.

Sure the guy was a jerk, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for him, especially since he wasn't in his right mind. It wasn't fair that he should get hurt or even killed by wolves just because he lost control. Finally, she sighed in defeat, "Damn it, why am I so nice?" she muttered and dismounted Minty. She spotted a large stick and picked it up before taking a deep breath and charging into the fight, "Bastards! Leave him alone!" she yelled as she popped a wolf on the head with her stick.

She swatted her way through the large crowd of wolves, hitting many bull's eyes in the process, until she reached the beast. She then hit the wolves that were on the beast causing them to fall off and the beast gave one last loud roar as Amelia stood defensively in front of him. The frightened wolves yelped in fear and ran off into the snowy woods.

Amelia grinned and dropped her stick in relief, but her grin faded when she heard a growl from behind her. She turned around to see the beast, his eyes still black as he stared at her, getting ready to strike anything that moved. Amelia didn't go for her stick; instead she slowly walked towards him with her hand outstretched. The beast eyed her every move as she got closer and closer until she hesitantly placed her hand on the side of the beasts' head.

The creature stared into her sky blue eyes as she did something he never thought she would do in this hideous form; she smiled, "It's alright," she whispered, "They're gone now." The beast's breathing became less heavy and, to Amelia's delight, his eyes became golden as he once again regained his humanity. The beast then let out a moan and collapsed in the snow and Amelia was at his side in an instant. His fur was cold to the touch and the gash on his arm had become even deeper than before. Amelia sighed, knowing what she had to do.

With great effort, she managed to coax Minty towards the beast so she could lay him across her back. Amelia then led Minty back to the castle where the servants were all waiting for her. They managed to get into the parlor where a fire was burning and set him in his armchair. The beast had woken up by then and Elizaveta came in full of hot water and Roderich brought in some bandages and fresh rags.

Feli limped into the room as well with the help of Hanatamago and lay down on the floor so Amelia could treat him; "It hurts…" the wolf whimpered as Amelia carefully took the bloody splinters out of his bloody leg, "I'm almost done, don't worry," Amelia said as she then gently wrapped the cleaned wound in a bandage like a mother would for her injured child, "I would stay off that for a few days; just so it can heal right," she said when she finally finished. Feli smiled, "_Grazi _Amelia!" Amelia nodded and poured the warm water from Elizaveta into a bowl.

She dipped one of the rags in it and wrung it out so it was damp. She took a deep breath and moved towards the beast who was licking his bloody arm, "Don't do that, you'll make it worse," Amelia said and reached out to him, but the beast snarled and pulled away. Amelia came closer to him and attempted to put the rag on his wound to clean it but the beast kept pulling away.

Finally fed up, Amelia became a bit more forceful, "Just hold still!" she said firmly and managed to slap the rag on the wound resulting in a loud roar from the beast causing the servants to hide behind a shivering Feli, "THAT FUCKING HURTS!" he yelled, but Amelia had had enough, "If you would hold still it wouldn't hurt as much!" she yelled back.

"You know if you hadn't led me away this wouldn't have happened!" the beast accused. "If you hadn't gone on a rampage I wouldn't have _had_ to lead you away!" Amelia shot back.

The beast hesitated for a moment seeing that she had a point until he responded triumphantly, "Well _you _shouldn't have been in the West Wing!" "Well _you _should learn to control your _fucking _temper, because I've had it up to HERE with your attitude!" Amelia yelled and silence enveloped the room.

The beast pouted as he had lost the fight and Amelia held up the rag again, "Now hold still, this might sting a bit," she warned and gently placed the rag on the bloody gash. The beast flinched, but didn't pull away; seeing as he wasn't resisting, Amelia continued to clean the wound as her anger melted away, "But…I _am_ sorry," she said.

The beast looked at her in surprise as she focused her eyes on his wound, "You're right; if I hadn't gone into the West Wing in the first place none of this would've happened," she said, "Because of me almost everyone got killed so…I'm sorry." The servants couldn't believe what they were hearing; after all, they owed Amelia for saving them all by leading the beast away. They were beyond thankful for what she did for them despite the damage it may have caused.

The beast on the other hand was stunned; normally he rolled his eyes when someone apologized to him because they were usually clearly wrong, but this girl…compared to what he did a few hours ago he was more in the wrong than anyone else here. Amelia had proved that, she had won the argument, yet she was still apologizing?

"It's…it's alright," he said and paused for a second, "And…thank you…for helping me out there," he said, managing to swallow his pride just this once causing the servants and Feli's jaws to drop to the floor. Amelia smiled and finally made eye contact with the beast, "Don't mention it," she said.

They stayed silent for a few minutes until Amelia spoke up again as she wrapped a bandage around the beasts' arm, "We…kind of got off on the wrong foot didn't we?" she asked, "So…since I kinda…live here now, how about we…start over?" The beast was a bit taken aback by the question but nodded nonetheless. Amelia smiled as she finished tying the bandage, "My name's Amelia Jones, nice to meet you!" she said cheerily.

The beast couldn't help but smile a bit from her happy attitude and from the fact that she was treating him like he was…normal, "Lovino…Lovino Vargas," he responded. It had forever since he told a stranger his name; perhaps…this really was the girl he had been waiting for.

* * *

Gilbert sat in the town's bar with Gilbird as he downed a huge glass of beer. This day had sucked; he had gone back to Amelia's house that morning to try to convince her to marry him again but she wasn't there. He assumed she had gone to town, but there was no trace of her; none of the villagers had seen her either, but they did say that her father Arthur seemed very depressed. One of the village children said that they saw Arthur sitting in a chair by the fireplace crying his eyes out.

Gilbert had waited around all day and by sunset he had finally given up and gone to the bar. Beer always made him feel better when he was in a bad mood; he couldn't remember all the times he came here when his little brother was said to be…no. He wouldn't open that door again, it was all in the past now.

Gilbert slid his glass towards the barkeeper to refill it and pet Gilbird's head, "So what now Gilbird?" he asked, "Do we wait for Amelia to come back or wait by her house?"

"You won't find her here anymore," A drunken voice said. Gilbert looked to his left and saw Arthur a few seats away from him, chugging down a bottle of whiskey. "My daughter…she's very brave ya know?" Arthur slurred, "Just last night…she decided, you won't believe this; to stay in a castle…with a beast!" he said.

Gilbert smirked, slightly amused by his drunken performance, "You don't say," he said, deciding to play along for the hell of it. The barkeeper grinned as he gave Gilbert his refilled beer glass, "He's been goin' on about this all evenin'; how big did you say it was again?" he asked.

"It was (hic) huge," Arthur said getting to his feet and waving the bottle of whiskey around, "And it was furry…and ugly, really ugly!" he said loudly causing a few of the barflies to chuckle; it was always a treat to watch a drunken show in this place. "Why if I could…I'd use my magic…to blow that ugly thing up!" Arthur slurred loudly, "Now that my daughter's stuck there forever…I'd say it's worth a shot!"

By now everyone was laughing loudly at how ridiculous the story was. Gilbert clapped Arthur on the shoulder, "I think you've got a shot!" he teased before laughing again with the other men. "I'll do it…(hic) ya git…I'll show you…" Arthur said, now close to passing out. At that point the barkeeper took the whiskey bottle and steered Arthur towards the door, "Well why don't you head home and get right on that?" he offered and shoved Arthur out the door causing him to fall into a snow drift outside.

The barflies all laughed, "That Arthur; you can always expect a good show from him, drunk or sober!" Gilbert sat back down at the bar when an idea began to form in his mind. Amelia really cared about her father, so much so that she would do anything for him. Gilbert smiled at Gilbird, "What do you think Gilbird? If something were to happen to Amie's good ol' dad…would she consider marriage?" he asked mischievously.

Gilbird chirped and Gilbert nodded, "I thought so…now how to do it…" he said quietly before taking another swig of beer. Arthur wasn't exactly guilty or feared of anything…but he still says some ridiculous things when he's drunk or sober, especially about magic. A light bulb went off in Gilbert's head; magic. He could infiltrate Arthur and Amelia's house; there's bound to be some evidence of something worthy for…arrest. Gilbert smiled and finished his beer; it wouldn't be long before Amelia was his wife.

* * *

**W00T! That was fun! I told you, Amelia wil NEVER be a DID in MAH stories; you do NOT fuck with this girl! Did you guess who the man in the mirror was? I mean, it's pretty obvious. The argument between Belle and the Beast in the movie always makes me giggle now because of how the Beast acts like a little kid who just lost an argument. And we FINALLY know Lovino's name so I don't have to keep calling him 'the beast'; Thank the Holy Roman Empire!**

**Dammit Arthur you drunken bastard! Whiskey can't solve EVERYTHING you know! But don't worry, he'll eventually come to his senses, cause Amie wouldn't want him feeling sad all the time.**

**I guess now I should explain what happened to Lovi when Amelia entered the WW; basically since he's been a beast for what, ten years, he's prone to phases that cause his to go crazy. He basically becomes the animal he will become if he doesn't learn to love. These phases usually only happen when he is feeling really threatened or harsh physical harm comes to his body (in this case, Amelia cutting him). Since these have been happening more and more often, Lovino is starting to have trouble keeping it under wraps and holding on to his humanity but we'll establish that in later chappies.**

**Now starts the whole 'falling in love thing' but I don't want it to happen right away. Since Romerica is a very complex relationship I want them to grow closer and closer before the library thing and eventually the dance scene. The only problem is...I don't know where to start. I'm eventually going to get into the Italies relationship but I think we want to wait on a sensitive topic like that. If you have any little scenarios dreamed up that could help Lovi and Amie get closer PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TELL ME! I don't want to get writer's block on this!**

**Review!**


	7. Snowy Memories

**I. FUCKING. HATE. SCHOOL! Because of that PRISON I've been having a blank mind for weeks! I've got HSA's, finals, and the freakin ACT...I'm swamped...at least I got SOMETHING up here...enjoy.**

* * *

Chapter 7

Amelia yawned as she stretched; what a night. She rubbed her eyes and cracked them open to find a slight surprise; she was still in the parlor, sitting in the large armchair! She must have dozed off after patching up Feli and the beast. Wait. Amelia recalled what happened last night; they had apologized to each other and made up, and the beast told her his name. It was…Lovino.

Speaking of the beast, Amelia heard a loud snoring on the floor. She looked to see the beast curled up like a dog next to the fire, sleeping peacefully. Feli was also there, curled up against the large creature like a puppy to its mother. Amelia tried not to squeal from how cute they looked when she noticed that she had a blanket wrapped around her. She didn't remember getting one, also wasn't the beast-er Lovino the one sitting in this chair before? Amelia blushed; there was no way…was there?

She let out a small gasp as Hanatamago jumped onto her lap, his tassel tail wagging happily, "Good morning," Amelia whispered, stroking the footstool. She looked at a large grandfather clock that rested against the wall in the back of the room and saw that it was about eight. The clock began to chime causing Feli and Lovino to stir.

Feli woke up first and froze as he realized that he was against Lovino. With jerky movements he jumped up and slowly limped away from the beast and Amelia couldn't help but notice a tint of fear in his eyes. The be-er Lovino opened his eyes and let out a loud yawn as he stretched, "Uh…good morning you two," Amelia said awkwardly from the chair as Hanatamago jumped off her lap and out of the parlor.

"_Buongiorno _Amelia!" Feli replied happily, his smile looking a bit uneasy as the b-Lovino stood on all fours behind the small wolf. Lovino nodded to her without a word making the tension in the room even more uncomfortable so Amelia got up from the chair, "How do your injuries feel? Any better?" she asked.

The two creatures examined their bandaged appendages, "It still hurts a little, but it feels better than yesterday!" Feli said with a smile. Lovino avoided eye contact with the girl and was definitely _not _blushing as he remembered their conversation last night, "It's alright," he muttered and Amelia nodded, "Good…that's good," she said before coughing awkwardly, "Well…I think I'll just go…wash up in my room," she said and hastily exited the parlor before letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

_That _was certainly the most awkward conversation she had ever been in; I mean, talking to Gilbert when he's flirting with her is one thing, talking to a massive beast who just last night went bat-shit crazy was another thing entirely. Amelia sighed and managed to find her way back to her room where Antonio and Katyusha were waiting for her, "_Buenos dias _amiga!" Antonio greeted. "Good morning," Amelia replied, feeling a bit more comfortable around the two familiar servants.

She took a quick bath in her bathroom and put on a new outfit that Katyusha picked out **(I have no fashion sense; just use your imagination on this one…)**. She was just going out the door when she saw Elizaveta coming towards her down the hall, "I was just coming to get you; breakfast is ready," she said.

Amelia nodded and followed the teapot into the dining room where two simple bowls of porridge were set and waiting. Amelia took her seat and Feli took his as well. They ate in an awkward silence (with Amelia trying to not stare at Feli eating his food like a dog) for a while until Amelia cleared her throat, "So…where's Lovino?" she asked.

She found it odd that he wasn't here since there were three chairs at the table. Feli hesitated, "Um…I'm not sure; he left the parlor a while ago without saying anything," he answered. Amelia nodded and played with the porridge in her bowl until she asked quietly, "Has it happened before?" The wolf tensed up slightly, "Ve?"

"Lovino; has he…lost control like that before?" Amelia repeated. Feli looked at the ground, "…_Si_…" he said barely above a whisper. Amelia noticed the wolf shivering and slowly got up. She walked over and placed a hand on the wolf's shivering form causing his head to snap up. Amelia could see the fear and trauma that last night had caused and tears of hurt and betrayal brimming his eyes; Amelia almost felt like crying herself from the sheer amount of emotion in his eyes.

Feli muttered something Italian and got out of the chair, heading for the door but Amelia ran in front of him and knelt down. She took Feli's head in both her hands, wiping away some of the tears in his eyes, "Feli…" she said softly, "Don't bottle it up; just let it out," Feli stared at the girl for a moment before putting his front paws on Amelia's shoulders and lying his head on her shoulder and allowing the tears to flow.

Amelia wrapped her arms around the tearful wolf as Feli began to spill everything in one long rush, "Oh Amelia, I don't know what to do! You're right, this _has_ happened before but never like this! It was never that bad! Whenever it happened it was only for a few minutes! Usually he would always stay in the West Wing and not hurt anybody! But when I saw him last night he didn't even recognize me! Even if he went crazy like that outside the West Wing he would never really hurt me like that! He would knock me aside or something but he never made me bleed before! Now I feel really scared of him! I'm afraid he's going to go crazy and hurt me or my friends again and I don't know why! I want to love him because he's my big brother but he's really never been the same ever since-"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Amelia cut him off and pulling away to look at Feli, "Go back; Lovino's your _brother_?" she asked. Feli sniffed and nodded causing Amelia's eyes to widen, "As in, 'he's related to you' and 'you grew up together'? _That _kind of brother?" she asked in disbelief. "_Si_…" Feli said sadly before getting off Amelia; he wasn't ready to talk about a sensitive subject like this yet.

He put on a small smile, "Thanks for listening Amelia; I feel a little better now," he said. Amelia blinked, "O-oh, no problem Feli," she said and the wolf walked out of the dining room. Amelia got up after recovering from that mind-blowing discovery. Seriously, _brothers_?! How was that even possible?! I mean, Feli was innocent and sweet and Lovino…well…he's the exact opposite!

Amelia sighed and put a hand on her head, "This place is just full of surprises," she muttered before walking out of the room, not noticing a tall shadow peeking in another doorway, who had witnessed the whole conversation.

Amelia let out a huge sigh as she wandered aimlessly throughout the castle; how could a castle _this _big be so boring? Her eyes wandered to the window where ice painted the glass with delicate designs and eventually fell on the deep snow outside. Amelia smiled softly as she remembered when she was a child and long time ago, when her mother, Emily was still alive…

* * *

_A young Amelia giggled as she ran through the snow that reached her waist. She tumbled and rolled around in the white fluff when she was lifted into the air, "I gotcha!" Amelia looked down at her mother who was grinning up at the small girl. She was almost the spitting image of Amelia, only her golden hair reached her back instead of her shoulders. _

_Amelia laughed as she hugged Emily who then fell backwards into the snow. Arthur leaned in the doorway of their house and smiled at them, "You two just have unlimited energy; I don't know how you can keep up with her like that." he said. _

_"That's 'cause we're both younger than you!" Emily replied, sitting up placing Amelia in her lap. "You're only three years younger than me Emily," She smirked, "Sure, you old man," she teased. _

_Amelia jumped off Emily's lap, "Come play with us daddy!" she called. Arthur shook his head, "I can't; you know daddy has work to do," he said. Amelia pouted, "Awww, can't you skip?" she asked. Emily mimicked her pout, "C'mon Artie, relax a little for once; you only live once you know." She said. _

_Arthur shook his head, "That's not going to work this time," he turned to go inside, "If I have time I'll come-ow!" Arthur was cut off by a snowball nailing the back of his head. He whirled around to glare at Emily who innocently pointed to Amelia; the girl was smiling and holding a second snowball in her hands, "Play now daddy!" she said before throwing the second snowball. Having her mother's throwing arm, Arthur narrowly avoided the attack, but was simply hit with another snowball, this time courtesy of Emily. _

_Arthur smirked and grabbed his coat, "Alright; this means war!" Amelia squealed and ran as Arthur ran after her and lifted the small girl into the air, "Mommy help! He's got me!" Amelia yelled playfully. Emily laughed and picked up another snowball, 'Don't worry honey; the heroine will save you!" she threw the snowball at Arthur, hitting his arm. _

_Arthur pretended like it had hurt with an imitated cry of pain and placed Amelia back on the ground, "I'm not giving up that easily!" Arthur said and picked up a snowball. Emily laughed, "You'll have to catch me first!" she taunted, sticking out her tongue at her husband. Arthur ran after her with Amelia close behind. Arthur grabbed Emily around the waist and spun her around a bit before Amelia ran up and somehow managed to tackled them both to the ground, all of them laughing as more snow began to fall._

* * *

That was the last time she had had real fun with her whole family. It was shortly after that day when Emily caught pneumonia. Arthur had done everything he could to make her better, but it was no use. All Amelia remembered of that fateful day of her mother's death was a little piece...

* * *

_Amelia looked up from the fireplace as she heard movement from upstairs. It had been a few weeks since her mother had fallen ill and the doctor was now checking on her. She ran over to the staircase, her young eyes shining with excitement hoping to see her mother and father coming downstairs together._

_ The doctor walked down the stairs with a grim look on his face. He gave the young girl a sad smile and a pat on the head before going out the door. Amelia turned back towards the stairs as her father slowly came down; his eyes were red and there were traces of tears on his cheeks. _

_Amelia tugged on his pant leg, "Where's mommy, daddy? Did the doctor make her better?" she asked. Arthur said nothing as he lifted her into his arms and held her close before saying, "Mommy isn't with us anymore…" _

_Amelia felt her heart freeze as she comprehended what he had just said. The girl burst into tears as she held her father tightly and sobbed into his chest. Arthur sat down on the stairs as fresh tears fell from his eyes as well while he whispered apologies and soothing words to his daughter. _

_The two stayed in each other's arms for the rest of the day as snow began to fall outside the window._

* * *

Amelia shook her head to get rid of the tears that she knew was coming; she hadn't brought up those memories in so long. It felt somehow…refreshing to get those feelings out of her system.

A sudden urge then came to her mind; she wanted to play in the snow. She spotted Feli walking down the hall and an idea came to her mind that could help them both feel better. "Hey Feli!" Amelia called as she walked towards him, "You wanna play in the snow?" she asked.

Feli looked confused, "Ve?" "Play in the snow; it's just sitting there! C'mon, let's have some fun!" Amelia said. A small interested smile came to the wolf's face, "O-okay," he said.

* * *

Lovino walked through the hallways of the castle away from the West Wing. He had spent a good hour and a half in there moping over what he had heard Feli say. Did he really feel that way about him?His thoughts came to a halt when a snowball hit one of the windows. Lovino looked outside to see Amelia and Feli running around outside. They were smiling and laughing while they threw snow at each other. Even Hanatamago and Minty were with them, running around.

Lovino felt a smile tug at his lips as he watched Amelia laugh; she looked so happy. He shook his head and briskly walked away from the window to rid his head of the thoughts, but Amelia's cheerful laugh and smile still rang in his ears. For the next few days, all Lovino would hear was Amelia's laughter, and not only because she was outside playing with Feli.

He would often spot her talking and laughing with the other servants; they would sit and tell stories from their pasts. But the strange thing was, Amelia wasn't the one talking; she was just listening to the other servants. She was definitely a strange girl.

The next day, Amelia put on her cloak for another day out in the snow; Feli had convinced a few of the other less fragile servants to join them when they had the time, so today was bound to be fun. As Amelia walked towards the door to the gardens she noticed a familiar dark figure sweep the hall. Amelia followed the figure and called out to him, "Hey, Lovino!"

The figure turned at hearing his name as Amelia slowly walked towards him, "What do you want?" he asked roughly. "I was just wondering…if you'd like to play in the snow with us." Amelia answered. Lovino's eyes widened in shock; she was asking him to _play _with her? "I mean, you've been cooped up in here for a long time, and I'm sure you must be lonely," Amelia continued, "You don't even have to play; you could watch if you want."

Lovino was quiet as he comprehended what was going on; this girl, wanted him, a hideous beast, to go outside with her. How was this even possible considering how he's treated her? "S-Sure, I'll-I'll watch," he eventually said. Amelia smiled, "Great; let's go!" she said and took his paw causing Lovino to totally NOT blush.

Amelia led him outside where Feli, Antonio, Peter, Minty, and Hanatamago were waiting. They all froze when they spotted Lovino behind Amelia. Lovino stood by the doorway as Amelia made her way towards the others, "Feel free to join in if you want," she said with a smile before running into the yard, "Alright guys, let's have some fun!" Her smile seemed to break everyone out of their trance and they proceeded to chase each other around in the frozen powder.

As Lovino watched he had to admit, it did feel nice to be outside for a change; everything was so peaceful and bright. Lovino was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt a ball of snow collide with his face. The playing abruptly stopped and silence took over as Lovino roughly shook the snow off his face. Finally, the silence was broken with Feli breaking down and shivering, "Waah! I'm sorry _fratello_! I really am! I just didn't look where I was throwing! You know I didn't mean to do it! Please don't kill me! I don't wanna die!" he wailed.

Lovino could feel his temper boiling up; it was happening again. He could feel his control slipping away, he was going to lose control again!

"Lovino?"

Lovino's head snapped up at the unfamiliar voice. He looked up to see Amelia walking towards him with slight…concern(?) in her eyes. "Lovino, are you okay?" she asked. Her blue eyes seemed to emanate a calming aura as the beast regained his control. Amelia stared up at him, waiting for an answer, but got none.

Lovino turned and bounded back into the castle, running straight to the West Wing. After slamming the door shut, he hung his head, "Damn…it's getting worse," he muttered, "It's happening more often now, even when I'm not mad! God damn this fucking curse!" he yelled, punching the wall.

How long until he completely lost it? Until he could no longer regain control and forced to give in to the monster inside him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw another petal fall from the glowing rose. It was now or never; he had to break this curse…or his whole family would be subjected to his wrath.

* * *

**Oh boy...Amelia better move it and start REALLY liking this guy! But of course that means Lovino needs to stop being a dick. We also finally learn that Feli and Lovi are related. I think Amelia reacted the same way I did when I found out about Italy and Romano being related when I first watched Hetalia...mind-blowing right?**

**Oh, and Shivavixen, thatnks for the suggestions! They really helped! :D**

**Next chappie we're gonna have some good ol' angst and family rebuilding which is KINDA the reason I put quite a bit about Amelia's mother in here. I guess you could say she knows how it feels when you're family's having problems due to a traumatic event...plus, we never hear ANYTHING about Belle's mother in the movie, they don't even bring her up! But who cares, the movie still rocks. So, we're gonna have a few fluffy chappies and then we can get to the REAL plot points! **

**Please review and send love scenarios if you want to see any!**


	8. A Broken Family

**UGH! WHY IS MY TIME GETTING EATEN UP!? I thought summer was supposed to be a VACATION! Sorry, but my days right now are just getting packed. I have Swim and Tennis team on one end and since I'm a rising senior, my parents are dragging me all over creation for college tours! IT ANNOYS ME! :(**

**Anyway, hopefully this chappie will help me get inspiration to finish. Also, the next chappie for 'Tales of America' will hopefully be up tomorrow, so be patient! Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 7

To say Lovino was getting worse was an understatement. Even the smallest ounce of agitation made him feel light headed; like he did before he lost control. For the next few days, the beast avoided everything and everyone in the castle. Maybe he was getting paranoid, but he couldn't risk hurting Feli or his servants again.

* * *

Amelia wandered through the halls of the castle, attempting to find an area that she hadn't explored yet…and _maybe _to find Lovino too. It's not like she was _worried _or anything, she was just…curious, yes, curious as to why the beast was staying so out of sight lately. I mean, she knew the beast wasn't very social, but she would at least see him in a corner or something looking out the window or at mealtimes; now it was like he vanished off the face of the Earth.

"Does he usually disappear like this?" she had asked Roderich. To which the clock responded, "He has been known for disappearing on occasions, but never for this long." So Amelia had taken matters into her own hands and decided to look for his herself; he couldn't be that hard to find.

* * *

Feli trotted down the hallway, looking around anxiously in case anyone spotted him. When he was sure no one was around, he broke into a run until he reached the doors of the West Wing. With one more backwards glance, Feli pushed the door open with his muzzle and slipped inside. He carefully made his way through the destroyed furniture until he reached the tall mirror.

He wordlessly sat in front of it as the blonde man appeared inside. The man knelt down to Feli's eye level with a slight smile on his face, but the wolf could still see the sadness in his icy blue eyes. Feli slowly lifted his uninjured front paw and placed it on the mirror's surface. The man placed his hand over the wolf's paw causing a familiar sadness to well up inside them both. The man mouthed the wolf's name, and Feli's eyes became glossy, "I miss you…Ludwig." He whispered.

Feli missed him so much; he wished he could just break the thin glass portal of the mirror that kept them apart. Just so he could be in Ludwig's arms again; just so he could touch him again. He would give anything to free his love, even if it meant staying as a wolf forever; as long as Ludwig wouldn't have to spend another minute in that glass prison, he would be happy.

Feli allowed some unshed tears to fall from his eyes when the doors to the West Wing burst open. Feli and Ludwig turned to the door in horror to see Lovino staring at them from the doorway. "L-Lovino," Feli stuttered. "Staring at that damn thing again Feli?" Lovino grumbled as he walked inside the room, "You know that won't bring him back."

Feli looked at the ground, while keeping his peripherals trained on Lovino's form, "I-I know… I-I just thought…h-he'd get lonely," he responded nervously. Lovino growled, "Whatever; just don't expect him to get out anytime soon," Feli's eyes widened at what he was saying, "B-but Amelia…she's going to break the curse right? Then we'll change back to normal and Ludwig will be free and…"

"You think I don't know that?!" Lovino snapped. Feli flinched and took a step back causing Lovino to huff, "Look at you, backing away from me; you're afraid of me," he said, looking away. Feli's eyes widened, "No, I'm not-"

"DON'T LIE TO ME!" Lovino roared, "Ever since this damn curse got placed on me you've been avoiding me; and you know what? I don't blame you! This whole thing is my fault; because of me we're all miserable! I can barely control my own actions anymore and almost killed you a few days ago!" Lovino turned away, "Face it Feli…I'm a monster; I'm barely human. No one, let alone Amelia, is _ever_ going to love me like this, so don't you dare say that you aren't afraid of me."

Feli took another step towards his brother, "But Lovino…I'm not afraid of you...really, I'm not scared-" He was cut off as Lovino angrily turned back to him, "STOP LYING TO ME!" he yelled, "JUST ADMIT IT FELI! I'M JUST A MONSTER! I HEARD YOU TALKING TO AMELIA THAT DAY! I KNOW HOW YOU REALLY FEEL!"

Feli's eyes widened in horror as Lovino's golden eyes turned pure black, "No…" Feli whimpered, "Not again…" The wolf began to back away as Lovino began to breathe heavily. Feli slowly tried to back towards the door, "_Fratello…_" Feli said softly as the beast eyed his movements, "Lovino…are you okay?" he asked.

As he spoke those words, a sharp wind came from the large open window from the back of the West Wing, slamming the doors shut, leaving Feli and Lovino in complete darkness.

* * *

A loud crash caused Amelia's head to whip around; she could hear the smashing of furniture. Amelia followed the faint noise until she came to a hallway she recognized; the one that led to the West Wing. Amelia sighed, knowing she couldn't go in there (especially after what happened last time) and turned away, leaving Lovino to have his tantrum that he was most likely having, when she heard a familiar yelp.

Amelia turned back to the door instantly as she heard loud and pained yelps and shouts coming from inside the room. Her blue eyes widened as realization hit her like a ton of bricks, and without another word, she ran towards the West Wing. She arrived at the door in no time and burst through the doors.

The first thing she noticed was a newly smashed furniture pieces all over the floor; Lovino was going to run out of things to smash at this rate. But the second thing she noticed was the shivering form of Feli, who was curled up against that mirror with Lovino hovering over him. It didn't take Amelia long to realize the situation as Lovino lifted his left paw to deliver a final strike.

Without thinking, Amelia ran into the room towards them, "Lovino! STOP!" she yelled and threw herself between them. She let out a small cry of pain as Lovino's clawed paw pierced her right shoulder. Feli stared up in horror as the beast kept his firm grip on her, sinking his claws deeper and deeper into her skin. He began to see blood appear on her clothes as Amelia snapped out of her pained daze.

Mustering up all her courage, she looked Lovino right in the eye as she placed her hands on either side of his head, "Calm down Lovino…it's just me," she said gently, wincing slightly from the claws embedded in her shoulder. After a few moments, Amelia felt Lovino's grip gradually loosen from her, but not because of her words.

Despite the situation and obvious pain she was in, she gave a small smile with her words. That smile is what finally brought Lovino back down to Earth; those deep blue eyes, that smile; that _smile_! Lovino's eyes became golden again as those two factors gave off their calming aura that guided him back to humanity. Amelia let out a sigh of relief as she slightly stroked the fur on his head, "It's okay, it's okay now." she whispered, still smiling and ignoring her now blood stained shoulder.

Lovino's eyes widened in absolute horror as he took in what he had done; what had almost destroyed. He saw Feli covered in small cuts and scratches and Amelia's shoulder. Lovino wordlessly turned away from them and Amelia got the hint, "C'mon Feli," she said leading the trembling wolf out of the West Wing and leaving Lovino alone to collect his thoughts.

A few hours later, both Feli and Amelia were all patched up. Amelia changed out of her bloodstained clothes and sat on her bed in her room. She lay on her bed staring at the ceiling until Feli pushed open the door to her room, "Hey Feli, how are you feeling?" Amelia greeted, sitting up. Feli walked over and sat near her bed, "I'm fine now…and I wanted to say…thank you for saving me," he said.

Amelia smiled, "It's no problem Feli." She said, moving so that she was sitting on the edge of her bed, "Do you mind telling me what that was all about though?" she asked. Feli looked at the ground as she continued, "'Cause something bad must've happened for Lovino to lose control that badly." Feli said nothing and slowly walked out of the room, "I don't want to talk about it," he muttered. Amelia frowned slightly; Feli was too traumatized to tell her anything now, so the next best bet would be to get Lovino's side of the story.

* * *

Amelia took a deep breath before knocking and pushing open the door to the West Wing. She peeked inside and spotted Lovino staring at the pink floating rose, "Hey," she called softly, "Mind if I come in?" She took his silence as a yes and slipped inside, slowly walking towards him, "I uh…just checked with Feli; his injuries weren't too bad so he should be fine," she said.

Lovino muttered something that Amelia couldn't hear, "What did you say?"

"I said what about you?" he repeated.

Amelia gaped slightly at the unexpected question before answering, "I'm fine," she said. After another silent moment, Amelia walked beside Lovino, "What happened?" she asked.

Lovino sighed, "My own brother's afraid of me," he said softly, "He says he isn't, but I know better. Everyone's afraid of me…I'm just a monster." He said. "That's probably true…"

"It _is _true!" Lovino snapped. Amelia put her hand on his arm, "Calm down," she said calmly, "Just tell what's going between you two," she said.

* * *

**Damn...this is getting harsh...Thank God for Amie's hero complex or Feli and Ludwig would be history! I think I may be over-emphasizing how Amelia calms Lovino down, but whatever! And uh-oh, Lovi's starting to doubt himself! Don't worry Lovi, Amie won't give up on you cause she's just that awesome!**

**Poor Feli and Ludwig...separated by glass because of a stupid curse...T.T**

**Yeah, I ended the chapter here to mostly get out of writing more dialogue; Hurt!Lovino is actually pretty hard to write... but up next we'll get the family back together and then we can finally get to the library scene and it will aaaaalllll be smooth sailing from there!**

**Review plz!**


	9. The Bond Between Brothers

**Oh my gosh! I am sososososososososososososo SORRY! I've kept you waiting for so long! Ever since I got back from my Hungary tour I've been struck with early senioritis! But I'm here now, I'm alive and I have new updates ready to go! I know school starts tomorrow so I'm making it my goal to get at least one new update on all my incomplete stories! Again, SO sorry about the wait! Enjoy!**

* * *

Amelia walked down the halls looking in every doorway she came across. She had been searching for Feli for the past hour; none of the servants had seen him anywhere so Amelia had been searching by herself. She passed by a window and did a double take. She looked out to see Feli sitting in the garden with the snow falling on his fur. Amelia smiled in relief that her search was over and went out to meet him; she had the perfect plan to get these two to kiss and make up.

Lovino had told her how he really felt and it was actually really moving; Amelia had a feeling that if Feli knew how he really felt and vice versa, they could patch things up without any problem. Amelia walked outside and placed her hand on the wolf's head, "Hey, you feeling okay?" she asked. Feli wordlessly nodded and Amelia continued, "I'm sorry for prying about you and your brother earlier," she said with a sad smile, "It's just, I kinda know how you feel,"

"What do you mean?" Feli asked. Amelia knelt down next to him and stared out into the snow, "See, my mom died when I was little; I had never felt so sad in my life and my dad was even worse. He would stay out late drinking and come home looking like shit; I you have no idea how much it worried me when he did this to himself. But what hurt the most was that every time my dad looked at me he would start to cry, because I looked so much like my mom; I was just a painful reminder of what we had lost. After a while I considered running away so my dad wouldn't have to feel that sadness anymore; I actually went up to him one night and asked him if leaving would make him happy…"

* * *

_"Leave? What the bloody hell do you mean?" Arthur demanded, wiping the tears from his eyes after another few hours of crying. Little Amelia looked at the ground and messed with her white nightgown, "It's just…whenever you look at me you start crying…because I look like mommy," Amelia answered causing her father's eyes to widen as she continued, "Ever since she left you've been so sad; you always are out of the house or crying and me being around only makes it worse," _

_Amelia looked up at her father with tears brimming her eyes, "If you really want me to I'll leave forever; if I leave then you won't be reminded of mom anymore and you'll be happy." She declared. Before she could even breathe, Arthur knelt down and pulled the little girl into a hug as fresh tears ran down his cheeks, "You're not going anywhere poppet," he whispered. _

_Amelia's eyes widened as she looked up at her father, "It's true, you do remind me of Emily, but if you leave it won't make me happy it will only make me even sadder." He said, "You're all I have left, and as long as you're here with me, it will give me a reason to move forward and keep living," he placed his hands on Amelia's cheeks, "Don't you dare think for a moment that you are causing me pain, if anything you're saving me from it; promise me you'll stay here and keep me safe like your mother did." _

_Amelia finally allowed her own tears to flow as she hugged her dad as tightly as she could, "I love you daddy," she sobbed. "I love you too," Arthur whispered back._

* * *

Amelia smiled at that fond memory and faced Feli, "This may seem sudden, but I think I have an idea that will help you," she said. "What is it?" Feli asked. "You're just gonna have to trust me; meet me in the tea room on the second floor in twenty minutes," she said with a wink. Feli was silent for a minute until he nodded in agreement; he felt that he could trust his new friend, he felt that with all his heart.

Fifteen minutes later, Amelia sat in the location she had specified; if everything went well then Operation 'Get the Brothers to Make Up' would be a smashing success. She had told both Feli and Lovino to meet her here and once they were in place, it would be smooth sailing. Right on schedule both Feli and Lovino entered the tea room from different doors. The two creatures stared at each other in confusion and Amelia quickly went and closed the doors so no one could slip out, "What are you doing?" Feli asked. "What the hell is going on?!" Lovino demanded.

Amelia faced them with her hands on her hips, "You two are going to sit here and have a little heart-to-heart talk," she answered, "Both of you are clearly at fault here since you have no idea how the other really feels; that ends now. I want both of you to sit down here and tell your side of the story and don't try to hide anything cause I'll know." She said, "Now sit," she ordered, pointing to two chairs in the room.

Feli and Lovino reluctantly complied; something about the evil look in her eye told them that they should do what she said. The two brothers avoided eye contact and Amelia sat down on the couch that was between the two chairs, "Alright Feli, you go first; are you actually scared of Lovino?" she asked.

Feli fidgeted, it was time to come clean: "Yes…I am afraid…" he answered. Lovino snorted as if to say 'no shit', but Amelia could see the pang of hurt in his eyes; but that pang disappeared when Feli continued, "But I'm not afraid of Lovino," The beast looked at his brother in confusion, "I'm afraid of the _other _Lovino, the monster that takes over my brother and hurts people. I'm afraid that one day he'll come and hurt all my friends, but most of all…"

Feli paused as tears came to his eyes, "I'm afraid that the next time the other one takes over…the real Lovino won't be able to come back! My real brother is mean but he's still my brother; he's always taken care of me and I still love him with all my heart," Feli's tears were starting to fall onto the floor, "I don't want to lose my brother to that monster; I want him to stay here with me, I don't want to be alone! But most of all I want him to be free from that monster that's taking over him!" he cried as his body shook.

Lovino could only stare at Feli in shock; that was how his brother truly felt? All this time…he was afraid of losing him? After a few moments of silence, Feli began to calm down Amelia turned to Lovino and nodded; it was his turn now.

Lovino sighed, "I never knew you felt that way Feli," he said, "I'm surprised you're worried about me at all," This caused Feli to look at him in confusion, "All these years we've been trapped here…I always thought that you hated me for what I did," Lovino continued. Feli looked like he was about to protest but Amelia gave him a look that told him to keep quiet.

"On that night all our lives were ruined, and all because of me; I was an idiot and because of me, everyone I care about is suffering with me and they didn't even do anything wrong!" Lovino clenched his paw into a fist, "But the one who is suffering the most is you Feli; all because of my stupid mistake you've been turned into a wolf, you're trapped in this god forsaken prison, and that damn potato-bastard you love so much is trapped in that god damn mirror! I avoided you all this time just to spare you from looking at the one person who single handedly ruined your life…I lash out at everyone who talks to me because I'm sure that deep down they hate me, who wouldn't? Because of my arrogance we're probably going to be miserable forever; if I could, I would tell that damned woman who cursed us to let you and all the others go and let me suffer alone. It was my mistake and no one, especially you Feli, deserves to be stuck like this." He said.

The next thing Lovino knew, Feli had jumped on him, hugging him as best he could, "I've never hated you _fratello_, no one hates you," he said as tears continued to flow freely down his face, "I'm so sorry I kept everything from you, promise me that you'll never feel that way again," he said.

Lovino felt something warm prick the corners of his eyes as he hugged the wolf back, "I'm sorry too…Feli," he whispered. Amelia smiled and stood up, "I think I'll leave you two alone now," she said and headed towards the door. "Amelia," Lovino called causing Amelia to stop and turn around, "…_Grazie_ Amelia…for everything," he said. Amelia smiled and gave him a wink, "No problem," she said causing Lovino to turn a light shade of pink.

As Lovino continued to hug his brother his heart began to feel lighter; he could feel his earlier doubts beings erased at the speed of light. Was this…what hope felt like? Even though the feeling was still small, Lovino had a feeling that maybe, just maybe, his life would take a turn for the better.

* * *

**SO... MUCH... FLUFF! SQUEEEEEEE! X3**

**I actually found it really interesting writing those speeches! It was like I was stepping into their psyche! That flashback with Amelia and Arthur almost made me cry when I was writing it...I can be pretty cruel to myself sometimes!**

**Anyway now that the family's back together I believe Lovino has enough feelings and gratitude for Amelia that next will be the library scene and then it will be smooth sailing! (I'm actually REALLY looking forward to the reunion scene when the curse is broken; it's gonna be so fluffy!)**

**I'll try to update this faster now that the hard stuff is hopefully out of the way now so tell me what you think!**

**In other words: Review!**


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